Exceptions
by Ameji
Summary: A newly pregnant Nami becomes a passenger on the Polar Tang for the protection and doctorly services of Trafalgar Law, who unknowingly happens to be the father. Will they figure things out together? Solve the kidnapping case of a certain heart pirate's girlfriend? Fight off the forces that want such a high-profile child for themselves? Rated M for later chapters.
1. Prologue

_**Hi everyone!**_

_**I've been writing this story since March and there may be a few changes here and there to chapters, but I'll put little notes at the bottom if they've been edited. It won't change the outcome of the story, though.  
**_

_**If anything in here is similar to any other stories, it is by pure coincidence. One Piece belongs to Oda, my ideas and some of the characters belong to me. I wish Law was on that list as **_**damn _he is fine (lol)_**

**_Homophobes can just leave now, I have included some same-sex relationships, although it is a surprise as to who. _**

**_Please enjoy :)_**

* * *

It had been a month of confliction. A month of torture. The pressure was building up so much that she was taking it out on an unlucky jar of pickles. She paced back and forth in the kitchen, continuing her internal debate, not paying any attention to the occasional glances from concerned uniformed men.

They scrambled away once they heard loud steps approaching from down the hall, not wanting to be caught up in whatever was about to happen. Acting casual as he walked by, they started placing silent bets on who was gonna win this one.

"Nami, I thought I told you to cut back on the salt intake," the man lectured, leaning against the doorway.

"And I thought I told you to suck it," she replied, not looking up at him.

He sighed, keeping his temper in check. "Your captain entrusted you to me, and as your doctor, you should be following my instructions."

"Your instructions clearly have never met the start of hormonal cravings," she polished off the last pickle pointedly. "I'm pretty sure salt is the first on the list."

"At least balance it with water," he pulled out a glass, placing it in front of her.

She flipped him off before grabbing the purified water from the fridge and drinking it straight from the pitcher, giving him a defiant glare. The extreme mood swings were clearly taking effect.

"Quit acting like a child," he scolded.

"Stop treating me like one, then."

He crossed his arms, letting a deep frown form on his face. "Why can't you just follow my orders? The first few months are some of the most dangerous."

"One: You aren't my captain, and two: I'm pretty damn sure I know what's fine. I've been reading those books like crazy," she argued. Taking a deep breath, she allowed herself to calm down and approached him. "Law, I appreciate that you took me under your care, but I'm pregnant. Not dying."

The doctor uncrossed his arms and let his gold eyes flicker over her, resting at her exposed stomach. "Alright. I'll try to be a bit less restrictive."

She gave a smile, her bitterness melting away. "Thank you. Now, we need to get more of these before I get tempted to drink the juice," she picked up the cucumber-less jar and shook it. "I might crave it but my mind is against it."

"Pickle juice is actually great for replenishing key electrolytes and is rumored to help with weight loss and cramps-"

"The benefits don't make it any more mentally palatable."

"I'll tell Jean Bart to stop at the nearest island, then," he assured. "Here's hoping it's not another chaotic mess like the last one."

She shuddered, remembering the unsettling island from a few days before. It had monstrous birds and bugs that had terrifying calls. Thankfully, the creatures were afraid of fire as most are, and they got away with the help of setting the beach forest ablaze. Once they had gone out to sea, Nami had summoned rain clouds from her staff and let it put the fire out.

Shaking the memory away, she allowed herself to watch the heart pirate walk out of the kitchen. With a sigh, she slumped over the counter. She was thankful that he was being patient with her, in more ways than one. Her mood and appetite were to be expected, and all the crew members knew it was nothing personal. Waking up on a ship that wasn't your own and getting sick every morning would give anyone a reason to be crabby, let alone pregnancy hormones.

It was the other way he was being patient that she was more thankful for. Her confliction was eating at her, and she knew he must have asked the question that she had the answer to a million times since she boarded the sub. Even though the answer seemed obvious, he seemed to be holding himself back just in case. Though he was being professional and kind, doing a favour for the crew he'd come to accept as friends, she knew the guarded look in his eyes oh so well.

Peeling herself off the counter, she looked at the jar of vinegar and spices and considered his doctorly lecture. It was put in the fridge just in case, and she allowed herself to walk away from the rest of the food that in two more minutes could've been calling her name.

The submarine halls were tall and wide, but the grey steel seemed to make them shrink enough for her to feel a bit claustrophobic. It wasn't even a week since her stay that she'd decided living in a sub was not meant for her. Thankfully, the crew understood the feeling of stuffiness and allowed themselves to resurface enough for her to stay comfortable. She still would've preferred to be _on _the ocean instead of _under_, but one of the reasons she was here in the first place was the underwater safety.

It was mostly her crew's idea in the first place.

The moment she found out she was pregnant, just a month and a half ago, she told her captain to stop getting them in trouble for a while. Despite him somehow agreeing, she knew the constant pursuit of the navy and the amount of danger that was naturally attracted to the rubber man would never end, keeping her worried she might end up losing the child.

Enter Doctor Trafalgar Law and his nearly-untraceable submarine.

_"Oi! You there?!" Luffy yelled over his den-den-mushi, making it and the surrounding straw hats visibly cringe._

_"Not so loud, idiot," a growl came as the reply. "What do you want?"_

_"Ah… Well…" the rubber captain scratched his head, trying to find a good way to explain it that wouldn't get him beaten up. His navigator had become _quite _sensitive. "Nami's gonna have a baby, and it's too dangerous to keep her with us. Can you take care of her on your ship for a while?"_

_The other line went silent for longer than expected, the snail displaying a face of shock. Luffy started to fidget, a little scared what would happen in the future if the other man said no._

_Finally, there was a reply._

_"Who's is it?"_

_"The ship is _yours_ right?" Luffy laughed, thinking his friend finally lost it._

_Law almost visibly facepalmed. "I mean the baby."_

_"I already said it's Nami's."_

_"Who's the father?"_

_The straw hat captain paused for a moment. "I'm not sure." He turned to his navigator, who now held a panicked look on her face. "Oi, Nami, who's the father?"_

_"I'm not telling you that!" she yelled, punching him over the head. "It's not anyone's business."_

_The line went quiet again, and she was visibly worried about what he might say. "No dangerous father will be hunting us down in search of you, right?" the question was directed towards her._

_"I promise that won't happen," she assured him._

_Chopper decided to cut in, hoping he could help. "Law, please take care of Nami. I don't have any equipment or knowledge about pregnant humans."_

_With a heavy sigh, he finally agreed. "Where are you guys?"_

_"We're a day north from Sanshiko island," Nami replied._

_"I'll be there in three days." With that, the line went dead._

_The crew stood in silence, their gazes one by one landing on the redhead who was still staring at the phone. "So, we should probably decide who the navigator's gonna be for the next while," she finally said, trying to change the subject._

_"I vote Zoro!" Luffy called, raising his hand. He was met with a dead 'no' from the entire crew._

_"I think Jinbe and I could figure it out," Robin volunteered. "Nami, can you please give us a crash course?"_

_"Definitely," she breathed a sigh of relief, trusting the historian and helmsman would be able to look after them. "Meet me in the study in an hour. I'm gonna go change and pack up a bit."_

_"Sure thing," Jinbe saluted, going back to his position for the time being. The raven decided to follow her to their room to talk about the situation, knowing there was definitely something deeper going on. She had her suspicions for a while, and based on the navigator's reactions, it was time to confront it._

_Pushing the door open after knocking softly, she saw the woman face down on their bed. She sat next to her, putting her hand on her back comfortingly. "Nami, keeping stressful secrets won't be good for you or the baby."_

_"I know," came the muffled reply._

_"You wanna tell me about it?"_

_"No."_

_"Are you sure?"_

_"No." _

_Robin decided to get her to spill whether she liked it or not. "How long has it been going on with him?"_

_"I don't know what you're talking about," the redhead played dumb, fidgeting with her hair. _

_"I'm talking about the man whose child this is," she placed her hand on the other's stomach. "I'm pretty sure I know who it is."_

_"Hey, just because you _think _you know doesn't make it true," she puffed up her cheeks defensively. "Also, one-night stands are a thing. There wasn't anything before or after."_

_Robin chuckled. "Is that what you're gonna tell him? That it didn't mean anything?"_

_"I didn't say that! I just can't disrupt someone's dreams just because I was careless, curious and a bit needy," she blushed, grabbing a pillow for comfort. "He can't venture out to find the one piece with a baby."_

_"Oh? And you can?"_

_Nami bit her lip, looking away. "Maybe. I don't know."_

_"I'm pretty sure he would be fine switching priorities if the other option is being a father," Robin reassured her. "Besides, if it's who I think it is, he's gonna be the first to notice if the baby is his."_

_The redhead sat up. "I forgot about that."_

_"Are you worried that his status will complicate things, or that you'll end up hurt?"_

_"Both… Neither? I don't know…"_

_"Nami, it's gonna be a long year if you don't tell him. Besides, he might think there was someone else in that time frame. My feelings would be pretty hurt if I liked you and thought I meant nothing to you," she teased._

_"Aren't I supposed to be the one complaining that I mean nothing to him?"_

_"Mmm, if he slept with you then there's gotta be something on his end," Robin mused. "You know how he is generally with women, beautiful or not."_

_"True…"_

_"Now, are you going to tell me what happened?"_

_Nami rolled her eyes. "Like I said, it was a drunken one night thing with a personal mission that I took too far. I didn't even manage to sneak away with his wallet before his stupid room went up and he took it back from me."_

_"Nami!" she gasped before laughing. "You slept with the surgeon of death for his _wallet?_"_

_"Hey, I said it was a personal mission… The wallet was supposed to just be a bonus."_

_"What was the mission, then?"_

_"I wanted to see if he was attracted to me like I was to him… It didn't even take that many drinks to happen."_

_Robin playfully smacked her friend on the shoulder. "I applaud your bravery, but you didn't use protection?"_

_"Hey, to be honest I was sure he would've used that stupid technique to neuter himself so these things didn't happen. Especially with the…" her eyes widened with fear. "The amber lead disease." She remembered Chopper reading it to them in some medical newspapers, revealing the rival captain's hardships and leading them to confronting him about it. _

_The raven stopped teasing and looked at her concerningly. "If the baby had amber lead disease, I'm sure he'll be able to spot and cure it as soon as it's born."_

_"Yah…" Nami cradled her stomach, now worried. Is this how she was gonna feel for the next few months? Worried and conflicted?_

_"Even if you don't tell anyone else, you have to tell him. Before the baby is born, you have to tell Law he's the father."_


	2. The hidden town

**Hello! **

**So this might seem a bit forced out at first (sorry). I wrote it as an extension for a re-write over the course of a few days, so it might seem a bit stiff and full of information. It flows a bit better later in the chapter, though. **

**As these chapters are hella long, I think I will only update once every few weeks. I'm in the process of editing and re-writing what I have so far, and these first few chapters weren't even included in the original. I used to have a process that I'd update on the 8th of every month and I'll most likely be reverting back to that. Please bear with me as this story really gets started :)**

**I want to thank everyone for their reviews. I think this is the most popular story I've written so far, and there's only been the prologue up to now! **

**Based on the reviews, though, I have to apologize in advance. I'm not actually too great at writing funny things, and though I'll try, this story is going to be more on the deep side to show the struggles of indecision and forces beyond control. That being said, I'm not quite ****_that _****deep either, so that's just my perception on how I want it to be.**

**Anyways, please enjoy. And again, stiff beginning. Sorry.**

* * *

**_Chapter one_**

"Captain, we'll be surfacing in twenty minutes," announced a man who was twice the height and triple the width of most of the other crew members.

"Sounds good, Jean Bart. I'll go alert the crew," Law replied, leaving the control room where the tall man and three engineers started preparing to ascend. He knew his polar bear mink was most likely in the study which he used as the navigation room, and he bet that's where the fiery straw hat was as well. The two navigators had been getting along, sharing information and enjoying each other's company.

The surgeon decided that room would be his last stop. He didn't feel like getting in the way of any excited exchanges in case until absolutely necessary, having been yelled at one too many times for his liking. Instead, he headed to the rec room first where he knew a good chunk of his crew would be.

Of course, he was right.

Everyone in the room stopped frozen as they heard their captain enter. It wasn't as if they weren't supposed to be there, but a few of them who were brought on more for submarine cleaning and maintenance were always on edge that they'd done something to piss off the former shichibukai.

"We'll be surfacing soon," he announced before his gaze settled on two of the seated men. "Penguin, Shachi, come with me."

"Aye sir!" they saluted, popping right up and following him into the hall.

"Something you want us to do?" Shachi, a redheaded man wearing a deep cap, inquired.

"When we get to the island, I need you both to guard Nami."

"Are you not going to?" asked Penguin, a man in an ear-muffed cap with his name in bold letters.

"I will from a distance," his eyes shifted to a nearby wall, avoiding their exasperated looks.

"Alright, be that way," the former huffed, crossing his arms. "Sulking is not an attractive quality, though, _sir_."

"It's called 'giving her space'," he sped up his stride, trying to outpace the duo. "Respect for privacy, if you will."

"It's called being a big baby," Penguin retorted. "Your picture would be under the definition in the dictionary."

The captain cursed to himself, wondering why the only men he trusted with the care of the pregnant woman had to be the only two in his crew that would mock him in this way. Being together since their early teenage years sure didn't give them the same blind respect that the rest of his crew had. While they _did _respect and trust him, they had quite the habit of regarding themselves as his best friends, and therefore, his childish tormentors.

He was pulled out of his silent grumbling, vaguely noticing the two had kept talking even when he'd stopped listening, as he reached the kitchen where three more of his prime fighters were gathered. "Ikkaku. Uni. Clione. We'll be surfacing soon." The trio didn't need any further explanation, following their captain into the hall and thankfully distracting the two pestering friends. It was finally time to enter the study.

Law almost lost himself in thought, trying to figure out how to act around the Straw Hat navigator this time. He'd been a bit harsh and too doctorly recently, and he knew she wasn't very pleased with that approach. Unfortunately, his other strong automatic behaviour towards her was a cautious, uncertain approach, and he refused to display such weakness. Maybe it was time to try to be nice and polite. Unfortunately, those were the two qualities that he'd pretty much lost since his childhood, so he didn't have much practise.

Before he realised it, they were inside the study with the two occupants staring silently at them. How long he had stood there, he wasn't sure. Clearing his throat, he directed his attention towards Bepo. "We're going to surface. I'm going to need you to make a map of it if it isn't dangerous." He then lanced over at Nami. "You're welcome to do so as well."

"Don't need your permission, but alright," she teased, turning to start gathering some of her material. She'd made a good, comfortable station and had been working with the mink to understand underwater navigation. In turn, she had been teaching him about surface weather patterns and a bit on how to predict it for better route planning. Of course, they'd barely scratched the surfaces, but they looked forward to each new amount of knowledge.

The captain turned to leave the room, not wanting to hang around longer than necessary. Even though he'd basically decided to try to be nice, he wasn't quite sure how that would play out when it came to more prolonged situations.

He didn't see the almost sad glance the redhead gave as he left, but his crew members sure did. With a sigh, Shachi and Penguin exchanged a look and followed their leader. Unfortunately, they knew there was nothing they could do to help other than keep him from acting ridiculous.

They were led through the halls and dismissed briefly to get what they needed to explore a new island. All they knew about it was that it did have a few towns somewhere, but it had a weird layout of different terrains.

Law carried on to his room without his subordinates, intent on grabbing his nodachi, Kikoku, and his signature spotted hat. Knowing he still had a few minutes before he had to appear at the water-tight door, he allowed himself to lay on his bed and groan.

The previous island was a little stressful, but nothing they couldn't handle. Hopefully this next one was even less… Predatory. His main worry now was the extra passenger. It wasn't as if he wasn't sure she would be compliant and helpful when they were on land; their last adventure proved otherwise. No, his worry was that she would see through his façade if something happened this time. The straw hat crew were impeccable at sensing feelings and intent, and their constant need to assure everyone was fine was a blessing and a curse, depending on the situation.

He liked it better when she was untrusting and aloof, suspicious that he would turn on her captain at any moment and wary of the true intentions he wasn't telling them about. That crew was more open and honest than any other he'd encountered, and it didn't help that they eventually rubbed off a bit on him, and he'd allowed himself to grow some sort of affection for the fiery navigator.

Three months ago, he would've been ecstatic to have her on his ship, set apart from her crew. One of his secret desires at the time was to have her to himself, locked away in his bedroom to be his own personal plaything. Her attitude and actions he'd observed when they travelled together seemingly forever ago told him she could take it. She wouldn't break like most others would.

Two months ago, she had approached him with a purr in her throat and a drink in her hand. It didn't take more than just a few light touches and the batting of her russet brown eyes to convince him to indulge in what he'd wanted for such a long time. His memory of the actual event was vague, but the marks along his neck and torso and scratches down his back he'd discovered the next day assured him that he would want to do it again.

He hadn't heard from her until a month later. The phone call of her crew asking for a favour. Of course, he would've done whatever they asked – he owed them too much. The news that the woman was pregnant was shocking and stirred more emotions in him than he cared to admit out loud. It seemed like it wasn't just lust he'd had for her, and since she refused to reveal who the father was, he couldn't help but be hurt that it might be his and she didn't trust him with that information. Or worse yet, that she'd been with someone else in that short window.

He understood she was as much a pirate as he, and he _knew _one of her main weapons was her seduction. There was also a darker possibility that someone had taken advantage of her. That was the only reasoning for him to not try to interrogate her – it could bring up more hurt than anything.

A part of him couldn't help but hope she never told him. His plans had never involved children, and he wasn't the type to abandon this kind of responsibility, thanks to the comfort and wisdom his two fathers had passed down. If she said nothing until she was back with her crew, it was her own fault.

Unfortunately for that part, the news unlocked a sense of longing that he never knew he had. And it was stronger.

His doctor attitude was too matter-of-fact and allowed his worries for the physical wellbeing of the mother and child to spill out. His regular attitude didn't quite seem appropriate for whatever level of friendship they had. The insecurities and worries tried to bubble to the surface, forcing himself to stay away from her for the time being.

Shachi and Penguin knew what happened that night, somehow, and hadn't let it go that he was doing his best to avoid her with the exception of the doctor treatment. Of course, he wasn't about to tell them about his inner turmoil.

A knock at the door told him he'd been lost in thought for too long. Grabbing the needed items, he opened it, expecting the dynamic duo. Instead, it was the very woman of his thoughts.

"Shachi sent me," she explained, seeing the confused look on the captain's face.

"Of course he did," Law rolled his eyes. "Let's go."

"I hope there aren't any gigantic bugs on this one," she admitted, clearly wanting to start a conversation.

"If we have to set the island on fire again, you can put it out."

She looked over at him with a look that he couldn't identify. It wasn't exactly bad… "Didn't know you had so much faith in me."

"I watched you fight numerous times. You may not be seemingly invincible like your idiot captain or your swordsman, but I know you've got reliable skills. Besides, you already put out a fire once. If needed, you could do it again."

"Oh? You don't consider Sanji as invincible?"

"With the amount of times he gets pummeled by uninterested women, I do not," he stated.

"Fair."

Their walk was shrouded in silence, the woman fidgeting, clearly trying to figure out what to say. She knew he was most likely tormented by the unanswered question about the baby, but she wasn't quite ready to tell him yet. First, she had to completely think through the pros and cons of telling him. Second, she had to figure out how he would most likely react. Third, she had to figure out how to keep it on the down low. The worry that a powerful pirate as the father would send the navy knocking at their door more than usual.

The whole situation about Ace, Luffy's late brother, was the source of her fears. Just _knowing _that the world government was prepared to kill just by bloodline. Shaking her head, she tried to clear those anxious thoughts. She hadn't even fully done the first part, yet.

Law watched her out of the corner of his eye. He knew something was bothering her, but was hesitant to ask. He'd known her long enough to have discovered that she wasn't afraid to speak her mind if it was important enough and would most likely prefer the situation to be left alone until she was ready.

He was right, and she appreciated his patience.

They finally reached the sealed door, not having spoken another word. The crew was already gathered, save for Jean Bart. They had been waiting for him to confirm that everything was good to go.

They didn't have to wait too long; he soon appeared and unlatched the door, letting a heavy breeze flow through the door as the submarine decompressed. The first one out was the captain, ensuring the area was safe. With a nod, he stepped further, silently inviting the rest of the crew to follow.

It was a breathtaking scene once they all arrived on the deck. The island before them was seemingly split in thirds via layers. The outside was covered by thick jungle with looming clouds that sent bursts of rain in a wave-like motion along the parts they could see. Just beyond that, maybe a kilometre in, the jungle seemed to drop off and they could see rays of sun beaming down.

The third part, which seemed further into the middle, was barely visible but from what they could tell with binoculars, there was something whirling around, seemingly solid enough to haze the scenery.

"Alright, I'm going to guess that there is some sort of town in the middle ring," Penguin announced, being the one with the binoculars.

"We should probably bring umbrellas," suggested Shachi.

"A little water never hurt anyone," Nami shrugged, sticking her tongue out when the other redhead looked miffed at the thought of being soaked. "I'm fine with getting wet. What kind of weather genius would I be if I couldn't stand the rain?"

"True as that might be, I don't want you to get sick," Law stated firmly, activating his room and getting an umbrella from who knows where. He held it out to her with a pointed look. "Take it."

She knew better than to argue when his gaze was _this _intent, grabbing the device with a mild pout. She defended him in her mind - he was just trying to keep her healthy, and this time wasn't completely unreasonable, especially considering her fashion sense of bikini tops and short skirts.

Once the ship was completely docked, they stepped out and prepared for any surprises. The jungle before them was thick, the only sound being rustling leaves in the wind and the rotating downpour. Nami was fascinated; these kinds of weather patterns were not unusual for the grand line, but this particular cycle seemed innocently odd.

Ikkaku and Clione led the way, carefully cutting any shrubbery in their way. The jungle didn't seem to have a clear path, but they didn't want to disturb the plants _too _much in case it would cause trouble.

Following them were Shachi, Penguin and Nami sandwiched between them. The men tried to keep her lighthearted with jokes when they sensed her slight unease while passing through. Ever since the whole extinct disease incident at the beginning of her grand line journey, she liked to be a bit more alert through this kind of terrain.

In the back to overlook everything were Law and Bepo, the latter trying to sketch out a quick chart of the path they were forging and the surrounding scenery. The captain kept a close eye on their surroundings, trusting his men to protect the Straw Hat pirate if something tried to attack. That is, of course, if he failed to keep the attacker at bay in the first place.

As they got closer to the visible weather line, the captain started to get a bit suspicious. It was rare that islands, especially this deep in the grand line, were harmless. Even animals were typically brave enough to come out and challenge visitors. Perhaps this jungle was considered a thick enough defence?

"Captain," Ikkaku shouted from the front stopping the group. She held her hand out to inspect the ground. "There are traps! Be on guard."

"Hold still," he ordered the group. "Room: Scan." The opaque blue bubble expanded over the surrounding area. He unsheathed his blade, making precise slicing motions in the air. "They're disabled now. Keep your eyes peeled for whoever might've put them here."

"Got it," the front lines replied.

The jokes had stopped between the trio in the middle as everyone was now on high alert. Law called back his power, wanting to conserve it as much as he could in case of an upcoming fight.

As they finally reached the edge of the heavy foliage, they gasped at the sight of the secondary circle. Yes, the sun beating down was inviting, especially to the crew members who got soaked, but before them was a vast, scorched desert. The ground was cracked and bones could be seen scattered around, mostly on the edge of the jungle.

There were vultures circling in the air, their shrieks reaching the visitors. In the distance, the core of the island was easier to see, though they still couldn't tell what it was as something was swirling around.

"Kinda looks like a never-ending vortex of sand," Nami mused aloud.

"What if it's a vortex of bugs?" Clione teased from the front, earning a light punch from his partner.

"That would be gross and horrifying," Ikkaku frowned, supressing a shudder.

"A vortex of crushed graham crackers?" Penguin suggested.

"Ugh, I hope it isn't. That means that one idiot from Big Mom's group set up camp here," the Straw Hat sighed, remembering the long fight with him the last time. "Sure sounds like something my captain would wish for, though. Well, other than meat."

"Whatever it is, we should probably stay away unless it's absolutely necessary," Law narrowed his eyes, trying to see deeper into it. "I don't want us to be at a disadvantage in there if something comes up."

"Aye, sir," the crew responded easily, none of them wanting to walk into an ominous possible death trap.

They hesitated before resuming their search for a town, stepping onto the scorched ground. Nami was suddenly thankful the captain had made her bring an umbrella; the shade was a mild relief against the sun. It was big enough for Shachi and Penguin to squeeze under as well, earning a glare from their captain and sticking their tongues out in return.

After only a few minutes of walking, they all were already hot and tired, regretting not bringing their own shade. The ginger navigator perked up suddenly, making the men next to her flinch. "I have an idea!" She took out her climatact and closed the umbrella. Elongating the baton, she twirled it a few times before pointing at the sky. "Milky road!"

A stream of thick, white cloud emerged, and she carefully crafted it so it would cover the next kilometer or so. It was a straight, narrow path, but it provided enough shade for the pirates to feel a bit more energetic again.

"Thanks, Nami!" Bepo ran forward to hug her. "I thought I'd die from the heat!"

"Yes, thanks," Law agreed, trying his hardest not to glare at the innocent actions of the mink.

"No problem. I'll do it again when this is up," she promised. "Let's get moving again, though. I really want to see if they have any nice clothes in town… Or maybe some air conditioning."

"Kay!" the crew listened to her as if she was their new captain. Realising this, she shot Law a teasing smirk, his only response being an eye roll.

They pressed on, Shachi now on the lookout with his binoculars. Every few minutes, the weather user re-shaded them, but the actual dry heat was finally taking a toll after about half an hour.

"Captain, are you sure this isn't just an abandoned island?" Ikkaku called back. "We're not even seeing signs of life… Other than the occasional human skulls."

"There are shipping routes for supplies that stop here. I'm positive there's at least one town," he replied firmly.

"Is it really worth it, though?" Nami wondered out loud, her dream of shopping starting to fade. "I'm tempted to use my shower tempo even though it's warm water."

Law sighed, inwardly defeated. If the pregnant navigator in revealing clothing was so hot and tired after all this, maybe it was time to go back.

"Man, who would choose to live here anyways?" Shachi mused. "Like maybe the rainforest, but here and the vortex seem uninhabitable."

That got him thinking. He stopped walking, deep in thought, and it wasn't long until the others stopped as well to stare at him.

"Room!" he called, activating the ability. He extended it quite a bit but mainly focused on pushing it down through the ground. After a few moments of searching, his eyes widened. "There's a town underground. I'll get us there."

With an utter of 'shambles', he teleported them to an underground passage. It was instant relief, the cooled air soothing the overheating bodies.

They looked around, noting they were on a wide path of just dirt. It didn't look like it was being reinforced with anything, but oddly enough, it looked like it had held up for a long time as the ground seemed thoroughly trampled on.

The particular spot they were in didn't quite tell them which way to go to find the town, but the talented Nami knew how to solve this problem. "Everyone stop breathing for a sec," she ordered, licking her finger. She held it up, changing the angle every few seconds. "The town is this way," she pointed to their left. "Oh, and you can breathe again."

The duo beside her let out dramatically loud breaths, inhaling as if they'd been on the brink of death. The woman rolled her eyes but couldn't help letting a small smile creep on her face.

Law led the way in the direction she pointed. It wasn't too long before they could hear some bustling, signaling that the underground was in fact populated.

"I feel like I haven't seen people in years!" Nami admitted excitedly.

"Hey," Shachi pouted, "we're people! Well, Bepo isn't human… But we're people!"

"Sorry," the mink looked down glumly, earning a light pat of reassurance from the other navigator.

"You know what I mean," she narrowed her eyes and stuck out her tongue playfully.

They reached a large clearing and were amazed at the sheer size of the town. The cavern seemed to have been blown out, somehow staying solid enough not to crumble when people walked above it. The town itself seemed pretty basic – wood houses, shops, and dirt roads. People were dressed in many spectacular colours, combating the dreary underground scenery.

Nami's eyes shone at the bright clothes, observing almost expertly the high-quality fabrics. "Let's go shopping now," she muttered, almost in a trance.

"Let's split in two teams, then," Law suggested, not exactly wanting to waste his own time on watching the guest pirate shop for hours. "Ikkaku, Clione and Bepo can come with me to get supplies. Shachi and Penguin can accompany Nami to shop for the more… Luxury… Items."

He suddenly felt uneasy about his decision when the appointed men gained excited looks in their eyes. Shaking the uncertainty away, he reasoned with himself that those two wouldn't try anything funny, considering they knew even just a smidge how he felt about her. Besides, if they _did _try something, the woman herself wouldn't hesitate to either beat them up, rob them blind or both.

They separated to look for their respective shops. Law was a bit suspicious that the townspeople didn't show any concern about the newcomers. If he had an underground town that was difficult to find, he would at _least _be keeping his eye on anyone who just happened to show up. Despite his suspicion, he found they were fairly nice people as he went around for supplies.

There was one store, a pharmacy, that ended up interesting him quite a bit. There were a lot of remedies for some sort of affliction he'd never heard of. "Sabaku poisoning," he read aloud off a bottle.

"It's the poisoning most people will get from entering our island's sand vortex," a pharmacist explained, coming out from behind her counter. She had sandy-brown hair and stood almost an entire foot shorter than the pirate woman. When she looked up at them, they saw her eyes were light brown with white specks in them.

"You can get _poisoning _from sand?" Ikkaku repeated. "Is that what happened to you?"

"Good guess," the pharmacist nodded. "It causes permanent discolouration in the eyes and skin after too much exposure, but it's the actual poisoning that's worrisome."

"Oh? Why's that?" Law asked, his doctor curiosity taking over.

"The sand is so rough and fine it can get under the skin and into the bloodstream. Once it does, it will turn into a liquid and start to overrun the white blood cells that try to attack it."

"Okay, I'm not a doctor, but let me just say: Yikes," Clione shuddered. "Why would anyone go into the sand?"

"Resources, mostly," she shrugged. "Also, there's an occasional phenomenon when the island's patterns shift, which brings the vortex out further, or one will spawn randomly in the middle of nowhere. No one can predict it."

"I'll take a few of these, then," Law picked some off the shelf and handed them to her to ring up, along with some other basic medical necessities he'd been running low on. A certain item in the corner piqued his interest and he made a mental note to check it out once his crew was occupied.

While ringing them up, the pharmacist happened to reveal a short passage to the ocean, explaining it was their main supply route. Law sent the crew out to bring things back to the ship, quietly purchasing the item and leaving with a nod of thanks.

The woman watched them leave her store, a worried look appearing suddenly. "Maybe I should've warned them about Edgar… Well whatever. That girl will be fine once she leaves the town."

XXXXXXX

"Oooh! Look at this dress!" Nami pulled one off the rack, holding up to her body. It was a strapless dark blue dress that flared from the waist and ended at the tops of her thighs. Whirling it around, she caught her escorts' attentions. "Don't you guys think this is super cute?"

The two men, overloaded with shopping bags at this point, gulped and looked to the sides, trying not to let their imaginations run wild with all the revealing clothes she kept picking. They realised they got the short end of the stick for this task. It would be a _dream _to help pick out any pretty girl's clothes, but they knew their captain would chop up their bodies and send parts around the world if they let themselves be captivated by the woman he'd staked his claim on, officially announced or not.

Besides, she was more like a forced sister at this point, and that was reason enough for them to ignore her non-intentional charms.

"Well? Should I get it?" she pulled them out of her thoughts, staring impatiently between them.

"It does look nice," Penguin finally answered. "If you like it, then get it."

"Done," she added it to this store's basket of her choices. This town turned out to be fashion central, according to the navigator. There had been at least six stores they'd been to, all tightly packed with bright clothes made with fine materials. Even though it was underground, this was her heaven.

Once her pickings from this store were paid for and transferred into yet another shopping bag, and passed to the almost-collapsing Shachi, they finally left the store.

Nami stretched contently, looking at their surroundings. "Let's get some food," she suggested, making her escorts silently cheer. Finally, a break from the clothes!

"Sounds good to me," Shachi cleared his throat, trying to hide his relief.

"What would you like?" Penguin looked around as well, noting most of the buildings surrounded them were just shops.

"Something deep fried… But something fresh," she answered, trying to figure out her strange cravings. "Maybe something fresh deep fried? A deep fried cucumber?"

"Those are two opposites," the redheaded man stated the obvious, also searching around to find some sort of eatery that might have the listed requirements.

"What about there?" Penguin pointed to a building just barely visible at the end of the block. There was a sign on the road in front of it advertising salads. "They might have some deep fried toppings for a salad."

"Good enough for me, hopefully, she joked, leading the way. The men wallowed behind her, trying not to fall under the mass of clothes they carried.

A chill passed through the both of them and they stopped, exchanging a look. It was the familiar feeling of being watched, maybe even hunted. They quickened their pace, wedging the woman between them protectively but staying quiet about it. There was no need to worry her for something their group could take care of.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Law dropped the supplies in the sub for the waiting maintenance crew members to sort and stock. It took a surprisingly short amount of time to get back, taking the tunnel the pharmacist had told them about. The secret entrance to the town hadn't been much of a secret in the first place. There was a wide opening just to the side of where they'd docked – a blind spot they hadn't initially thought of checking.

The captain knew Nami's shopping habits, most notably the sheer amount of things she bought with the money she'd weaseled others out of. Since his two most trusted men were with her, he knew he at least had an opportunity to drop the ship supplies off before joining them to hold the bags he knew she wouldn't be carrying.

Besides, there was something a bit strange about the town that made him want to go back, and he would rather have their hands free enough to put up a decent fight.

Leaving the supplies to the mass crew, the four set out again through the tunnel. A sudden, feint sound stopped them, and they strained their ears to hear a quiet groan.

"Help… Me…"

Law flared out his room in search of the source and determining if this was a trap. Determining the situation was decently safe, he switched the source with a nearby rock. The other three members gasped at the sight of a battered woman now laying in front of them.

She had severe cuts and bruises on her face and body, and her clothes were torn enough to now be called rags. Somehow, she was somewhat conscious and was able to shakily look up at them. "Help," she muttered with the last of her strength, falling unconscious.

"What do we do?" Clione asked in the place of the other two companions, who were frozen in shock at the painful sight. It wasn't rare they'd run into battered bodies, but she clearly was from the town they'd subconsciously deemed 'safe'.

"I want to treat her, but we need to go find the others," Law replied, now worried about the three they'd sent to go do leisurely things.

"Well we can't just leave her here!" Ikkaku willed herself to speak. "She'll die! Didn't you take some sort of doctor oath to help whoever needed it?"

"I'm a _pirate. _I do as I see fit," he snapped coldly, making her shrink back a bit. Seeing her semi-horrified look, he softened his gaze a bit. "We'll take her to that pharmacist, look for the others, and I'll treat her if there's time."

"I'll carry her," Bepo volunteered. He'd travelled with the captain long enough to know how to properly pick up injured people. His soft, thick fur also aided in cushioning.

"What if whatever did this is in the town?" the woman speculated, now even more worried.

Law forced a blank face and stared straight ahead, trying to keep his inner panic from display. "Nami might be in danger."

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Shachi and Penguin were both amazed and horrified at the weird amount of things Nami had managed to pile on a salad, if it could be called that anymore. Deep fried shrimp. Deep fried onions. Somehow, they even deep fried eggs and sausages to put on there. It was good that the woman seemed content eating it all, but the men's stomachs were unsettled just watching it.

They instead tied to focus on their own plain-in-comparison bowls of lettuce and vegetables, at the same time keeping an eye out for the source of their feeling of being watched.

The spot they chose in the restaurant was a closed-in booth at the very back. Penguin sat himself next to the navigator, keeping her in between him and the wall, and Shachi sat across from him to look out for anyone suspicious. They might've been worried about her being attacked through the window, but typically these feelings led to a sneak attack of sorts, and instant death was never the goal.

They were sure their captain would've sensed something strange from this town by now, too, and was most likely on his way to them. Even if they did have to fight, they were a bit more confident knowing he was close enough to have their backs.

Shachi briefly glanced out the window, sensing movement, and his eyes widened in shock. "It's Law," he pointed. Speak of the devil.

"What's Bepo carrying?" Nami asked between mouthfuls of food.

"It looks like a person… A woman!" Penguin jumped up suddenly. "She's seriously injured!"

"We have to stay here, stay calm, and finish our food," Shachi instructed. "If we go out there, we won't be as safe and will only get in his way."

"Hm?" the woman finished another crunchy bite. "Is there a fight happening? Did that stalker finally come out?"

"No idea, but it looks like things are gonna start heating up."

"Nami, you knew about the stalker?" Penguin asked, a bit amazed as he thought she was in a state of a one-track mind.

"Of course! I'm a beautiful woman who is in one of the most wanted pirate crews in the world. You get a good sense for these things," she explained. "Either way, let's stay here for now where it's safe. I don't want to risk getting into a fight right now, and I also don't really need the stress."

"That's why Captain put us in charge of protecting you. We can fight well and don't attract as any problems as the supernova," Penguin gestured to where the other four had gone.

"Well, we still attract problems since we're his crew and the unluckiness probably rubbed off on us… But you know what we mean," Shachi joked.

Nami smiled, though a bit uneasy. "I sure do."

Penguin tried to look out the window but gave up shortly, looking at his partner with defeat. "Can you see what Law's doing out there?"

"He went into that building," the man reported. "Oh, and there's someone following him in!"

"I know this might sounds dumb but he'll be okay, right?" Nami couldn't help but worry.

"He'll be fine… Probably," Penguin reassured her, though he looked uneasy himself.

"This town is too weird for my liking," she shuddered. "I hate the feeling of being watched."

The men exchanged another look and nodded. "Let's go back to the ship," Shachi suggested. "I'll pay the bill real quick, though. We're pirates, not savages."

"Heh, that's a first," the other man teased. "Trying to show off some form of manners?"

"Hey! I always have manners! They're just wasted on our male crew."

"What about Ikkaku?"

"You know she doesn't count! She might as well be another man… Except for her hair and boobs.

"You sound so mannered and sophisticated, talking about another woman's boobs."

"You're talking about them now, too!"

"I'm not!"

"Yes you are!"

"Nami, be the judge!" they both turned to look at her. Shock and worry flooded through them as they realised she was no longer there.

"Impossible! She didn't even slip by me," Penguin stood and looked under the table. He looked back up at his partner and shook his head. She was gone.

"They got her," Shachi stated, his tone growing serious. "We've got to get her back."

Slamming the money down for the bill, they rushed out onto the street and looked around frantically. There were no signs of her, and they were unfortunate enough to choose a restaurant just off an intersection.

"We need to find the captain. He'll be able to sense where they took her," Penguin instructed, heading the way they saw him go.

"He'll kill us!"

"If we don't get him, they might hurt Nami!"

"Good point… I saw him run into the building there," he pointed down the road to a building with the words 'pharmacy' printed on the top. A sudden pained scream could be heard from the very building, and they sprinted to it with concern and panic coursing through their veins. This was _not _a good island so far.


	3. Stolen, not broken

**Hi! **

**Sorry for the second update, but apparently the site wanted to publish scrambled code instead of an actual story. Of course I posted and dashed, so it was kind of my fault for not checking haha.**

**Happy belated birthday to Law, our favourite fictional guy. Too bad I couldn't bring myself to post two days early.**

**Anyways, enjoy this chapter. It might seem like things could be moving fast, but in the whole scale of what I've got, this will move only a little faster than the anime Wano arc. Seriously, four episodes to do two things. Wow.**

**Thank you to everyone who followed, favourited and reviewed. it means a lot to me :)**

* * *

"Let me go!" Nami struggled in the grasp of two masked people who were paying no mind to her words. "Don't think I won't beat the crap out of you as soon as I get an opportunity! Sneak attacks are pathetic and unfair!"

"Oh, I guess that means we just can't give you any opportunities then, doesn't it?" a deep voice echoed through the caved passage.

She hadn't been blindfolded, but she had no idea where she was or how she got there. One second she was enjoying watching her companions' argument and comparing it to Zoro and Sanji's constant bickering, and the next she was being dragged through the dark by two men with strong grips. "What do you want from me?" she hissed once they finally stopped walking. A sudden spotlight fell on her, making her eyes burn.

"Cat thief Nami."

"_What_?" she spat, _really _not impressed with the situation.

"Tell me: what is the weakness of pirates?"

She tilted her head to the side, squinting from both the light and the thought that this man must be _stupid_. "It depends on the pirate, dimwit." She knew she probably shouldn't be poking the bear, but her annoyance amplified by hormones overpowered her usual charismatic talents.

A deep chuckle surprised her. "I suppose I should be more specific, then. What is Straw Hat Luffy's weakness?"

"And why would I tell you that?" She tried struggling again, but the men still held her tight.

"I suppose even if you did say something, it wouldn't be true. All women are _liars_, after all."

Her blood ran cold at the sudden malicious change in his tone. A wave uneasiness washed over her, and she prayed for rescue. Surely Shachi and Penguin had noticed her absence already, and they had seen where their captain ran off to. "Even if I _was _telling the truth, you wouldn't believe it anyways," she said, trying to buy some time.

"I have a certain solution for that. Literally."

As if on queue, she was pushed forward. Another spotlight appeared over a chair with straps all over, making her once again attempt to wiggle out of their grip to no avail. There was no given opportunity to escape, even when they were forcing her into the chair.

She felt the straps tightening and locking on her wrists, stomach, legs and neck to prevent her from struggling. She knew she should be worried most about the one digging almost painfully into her torso, but she was too stunned by the man who finally decided to show himself.

"You have two options here, girlie," he started, but she wasn't exactly listening.

Instead, she was inwardly gasping at his nearly-white eyes, his tanned skin that was speckled with white and beige splotches, and his hair that was deep red with light brown roots. Something dangerous had _caused_ this, she knew for sure. Travelling around the world never revealed any races or species with discoloured eyes, skin _and _hair. Her silent question was answered as she zoned back in to what he was saying.

"Your first option is to get thrown into our sand vortex. You'll either come out looking like me, or not come out at all. Your second option is to allow us, with _allow_ being a kind word, to inject you with my special truth serum."

After a moment of thought, she decided to reply. "Is there a third option?"

"If you prefer torture methods, I can always pull out your fingernails or break all your fingers and toes, but I still wouldn't believe what you would say."

"And the sand vortex isn't just torture, then?"

"Bones can heal and nails can grow back. Painful DNA altering is permanent and… Compelling…"

"Ehh… I don't like any of those options, then," she stammered. This situation was just plain _bad_. "Even if you put me outside or inject me, you still wouldn't believe Luffy's weakness. It's just that ridiculous."

"I assure you my truth serum is a hundred percent functional, and I would believe you," he crossed his arms, clearly becoming annoyed at her stalling.

"Is it safe?"

"For the most part. Most of our civilians have it in them," he assured. "I wouldn't dare kill a crew member of one of the emperors – that's just asking for a death sentence. I'm not stupid."

Nami closed her eyes to think. It would be awful to be injected with a potentially unsafe drug that could hurt her baby, but it was clearly her only given option. The outside exposure would be painful and deadly, and she was _sure _he wasn't telling her whatever other morbid things happen in the vortex. The torture methods were almost unthinkable. The stress would kill it in a second.

If anything was clear, it was that she should not be trusting this man, even if he said his intentions didn't include her death.

A brief thought of who her current companions were gave her hope – she knew first-hand that Law would be able to take out the serum easily, and if he arrived soon like she expected, she didn't have much to worry about. There was no way he would let her and her baby die from something like this.

She rarely lost at gambling, usually cheating in some way, but she was ready to bet on him. "Fine. I'll take the truth serum."

A wicked grin was the only thing she saw as a burning pain seared through her arm and spread throughout her body. She grit her teeth but kept a calm façade, refusing to let him enjoy this.

"My name is Edgar," he introduced. "What is your full name?"

"Nami."

"Oh? You don't have a full name?" he prodded, looking quizzically at her. She couldn't blame him – it was rare that someone didn't even make up a last name for themselves, parents or not.

"I don't. Do you?" she jutted out her chin defiantly. Even if she was under this spell, she still had control over her actions.

He pulled back, not looking too pleased with her act. "Touché, but _you're _the one under interrogation here. I don't need to tell you anything. Now, what is your captain's weakness?"

"Meat."

The deformed man stared at her blankly before furrowing his eyebrows. "Come again?"

"I did tell you it's hard to believe. It's pretty common knowledge, too. A biker gang once was able to lure him with it…"

"SHUT UP!" Edgar shouted, making his subordinates flinch in the background. "It can't be something so stupid! The fifth emperor can't have such a pathetic weakness!"

"Hey, its _your _'one hundred percent perfect' serum. I'm risking lives here, and you're mad at the truth? What did you want me to say, sharp objects? That's basic!"

His head cocked a bit at her words. "Risking lives? Multiple?"

Her eyes widened and she bit her lip, trying to avoid saying more. Unfortunately, the serum was too powerful. "Yes," she replied, gritting her teeth.

"The only life being risked right now is yours, that I know of," he went from agitated to sly again, clearly intent on learning something interesting. "Who else do you think I could instantly kill?"

Her teeth dug into her lip hard enough to draw blood, and she thrashed her head around trying not to reply. She could feel the words burning in her throat, and she knew if she continued talking, the chances of them surviving, or at least coming out okay, would be diminished.

"Come on, tell me," he coaxed.

"My baby," she felt like her words were being pulled out of here, and her eyes started to burn with tears. This was now a worse situation.

"Oh, you have a kid? Where is it?"

Another chill ran through her at his intrigued look. "In it's first trimester."

"And I assume it's the child of the Straw Hat himself?" He took a step back and looked thoughtful. "Man, he must be an awful captain for meat to be his weakness rather than you." He leaned in closer again, looking pointedly at her stomach. "I'm sure I could get quite a but of money if I sold it to the marines."

"It's not his, and don't you dare," she admitted with a death glare.

He looked disgusted at her words. "So you're a whore like the rest of them. Can't even be loyal to your own captain and do the only thing women pirates are good for."

"You're just a creepy bipolar misogynist," she hissed, throwing concern for herself out the window. She felt a bit hypocritical with the bipolar part, but fear and anger were at equal levels in her mind, more than self-preservation. "It's none of your business. Who do you think you are, anyways? You think you could go up against Luffy even _with_ knowledge of his weakness?"

His face twisted into an assortment of emotions including fury, annoyance and disbelief that she'd talk to him this way. "I'll keep you here until it's born and make you watch as I throw it into the vortex," he threatened.

"I doubt you can keep me here for another five minutes. You seem to be forgetting about the men who accompanied me here," she didn't allow the disturbing threat to faze her.

"Oh, I'm guessing one of _them _knocked you up, huh? I'll keep them here to watch your kid get destroyed too."

"You can go ahead and try," a known voice cut in from behind her. She couldn't see who it was, but the smell of antiseptic gave it away, if not for the low voice she'd come to know as somewhat soothing. "Like she said, you won't waste even five more minutes of her time."

"What?!" Edgar's mouth dropped open and he turned to his workers. "You didn't tell me _he _was here! Only a pair of arguing idiot sailors!"

"Excuse me, those are my best men," the newcomer growled, confirming his identity. "Not that I blame you guys for focusing more on a flashy woman in a revealing outfit rather than noticing I was here. Typical."

"Wait… I'm right, aren't I?" the opposing man smirked. "One of the men accompanying you. It's him, isn't it?!"

Law stepped in front of her, shielding her from looking at the deformed man any longer. "Who can say?" In a split second, she saw him activate his room and heard pieces of bodies falling to the floor.

"Law, perfect timing!" she called out happily, her main worry fading away.

"A little earlier would've been even better," he replied apologetically, turning to her to remove the restraints. "Better yet, if you weren't taken in the first place."

Based on his tone, she was a bit concerned for the fates of Shachi and Penguin. It wasn't exactly their fault she'd been stolen, but at the same time, they'd been clearly put in charge of protecting her. Deciding this wasn't quite the time to be worrying about others, she opened her mouth to tell him about the serum, but was interrupted by shock at suddenly being lifted. She felt blood rush to her cheeks when she realised she was being carried. "Hey, I can walk!"

"Oh yeah? Try to move your arm," he challenged.

"Okay?" she agreed, panic coursing through her when she realised she couldn't. "It's not working… Why can't I move?"

"The injection he gave you takes away limb function. I have you bring you to the clinic right away to extract it before it affects your pregnancy."

"Hah, you're not going to get it on time! It has no antidote," Edgar called from the floor, almost having been forgotten. Law turned to him with a glare, somehow balancing the woman in one arm as he took his sword out of its sheath.

"You clearly don't know what I'm capable of," he growled as he approached the cut-up man. "Also, it would've been smarter to let us forget you were here. How _dare _you steal my guest, a pregnant woman of all types, and inject her with harmful substances just because you're a coward who hates women. You're pathetic." With the final insult spat, he jabbed his sword through the horrid man's dismembered arm, getting a pained scream from him.

As he sheathed his sword again and sent out his room, the man decided to shout one last vile warning. "This is just the beginning of your troubles from me, girlie."

Without paying him any mind, Law teleported multiple times to get back to the town while carrying the immobile woman. "So, how did you know about the serum?" she asked, trying to shake her captor's ominous words out of her head.

"We found a really beat up woman who told us about it. She also knew where to find you. Thankfully, Shachi and Penguin found me right when we finished the surgery so she could tell us," he explained, finally stopping the special transferring inside a room.

She looked around and saw it looked like a regular clinic room with a bed, a few chairs and some medical tools. He put her down gently on the bed and put on some rubber gloves. "You might want to close your eyes," he warned. "This will feel a bit weird, but I promise I won't be doing anything harmful."

Taking his warning, she squeezed her eyes shut. Remembering Chopper's reaction to the technique back on Punk Hazard, this was not going to be pretty.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

"My name is Jenna. It's nice to meet you," a battered woman introduced, sticking her hand out invitingly.

"I'm Nami," the navigator replied, taking the invite. She took a moment to observe her appearance – dirty blonde hair, tanned skin and a petite figure. Her skin was littered with cuts and bruises. Her lips were chapped and scabbed. Blue eyes were framed with dark purple bruises. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened to you?"

"Oh, that. Well, Edgar isn't really the biggest fan of women-"

"I could tell," Nami narrowed her eyes.

"I work at a café, and he was particularly upset that I put too much sugar in his coffee. He thought I was trying to cover up the taste of poison," she explained, shrugging as if she'd just told them how clouds form.

The redhead's jaw dropped and her brows furrowed in anger. "Why do you girls stay here? From what I've seen, it's a mostly female population here."

Jenna frowned and fidgeted with one of the bandages on her arms. "If we show any sign of leaving, he'll throw us in the sand vortex for hours. I've been thrown in only once, but there are some women here who are so discoloured they're almost unrecognisable compared to who they used to be."

"That's unforgivable!" Nami shouted. "How has there not been an uprising yet?"

"He's got us all injected with that stupid serum. If he asks a question, we aren't even able to change the subject. He's got us all trapped."

"Well, he's in pieces now. You can do whatever you want with him," Law cut in, leaning against the doorway. "It will take him a bit to put himself back together. You can tell your town where he is. He won't be able to function for a while."

The navigator's eyes narrowed as she watched the injured woman's demeanor change to something more… Cutesy.

"You're not sticking around?" Jenna pouted, sticking out her cut bottom lip and batting her eyelashes.

"No. We got what we came for," he replied curtly. "Our sub is loaded and waiting for us. Your recovery should be quick and is easy enough for the doctors here to help with.

"Guess that means we're leaving then," Nami said with a fake perky smile as she moved to the door. "Take care."

They were finally leaving. She tried to ignore the almost longing look the injured woman was shooting towards the captain, pushing down the annoyance and leaving it behind with the door shut. She had no right to be jealous when she wasn't letting herself have any claim on him.

Shaking away those thoughts, she walked slowly with him and the trio that were waiting in the hall, as her limbs were still regaining functionality. Bepo, Shachi and Penguin had stayed while Ikkaku and Clione had gone back to the sub to let everyone know what happened. The serum had been removed completely from her body, but they were there just in case she was still unable to move. Well, Bepo was. The two others were there out of concern, and possibly punishment.

The men respected her stubbornness to walk slowly along, but as it took ten minutes to even leave town, the mink finally offered to carry her. To everyone's relief, she accepted, and they were soon on their way at a more reasonable pace.

Once they reached the sub, they set out without a second thought. This island had been a lot more of a hassle than necessary, and they were hit with the realisation that there was no such thing as a single normal island in the grand line.

After putting her many bags worth of new clothes in her room, Law cornered her at the door. "Are you up to doing the first ultrasound? I'd like to make sure with my own equipment that everything's okay."

She gave a hesitant nod amidst the sudden confusion brewing inside her. The first ultrasound was supposed to be exciting, but worry about the serum's affects and the truth behind the baby's origins were mudding the moment. Wouldn't it be tense for both of them to be staring at whatever image came up, questioning life and relationships? Or was she just overthinking?

She found herself standing in the medical bay, having followed him out absentmindedly as she worried. A special medical chair had been set up for her. It looked more comfortable than the other few pushed aside in the office, and once her observation was voiced, Law quietly admitted to getting it for her to maximise the comfort of a pregnant woman. It even included a soft pink pillow to lean on.

"Okay, have a seat," he gestured before putting on a doctor's coat and some gloves. Once she was comfortable, he took out a stethoscope. "I'll be doing a routine checkup for you first."

"Alright," she agreed, nervousness boiling just under her skin. There was no way he could find out just by doing inspections like this, but it was still eating at her.

"Sit on the edge, please," he instructed. He moved behind her and placed the scope, instructing her to take deep breaths. Moving around to the front, he looked down at her. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to get a bit touchy."

"The only curse of having big boobs," she joked, trying to lighten the tension. His only response was a small smile, possibly a pity one, as he moved the scope between her breasts with the same instructions as before.

"Your lungs sound clear, but your heartbeat is a bit fast. I know you aren't exactly aware of your family medical history, but does this happen often?"

"I don't think so," she replied quietly.

"Okay, I'll be monitoring it just in case then," he wrote something down on a nearby clipboard before switching instruments. He grabbed a small flashlight and a popsicle stick, instructing her to open her mouth.

The rest of the checkup went rather quickly once her nervousness faded. Getting inspected by Law wasn't quite as cute and friendly as Chopper, but he was thorough and gentle enough for her to count him as a close second favourite.

"Everything seems normal. I'm going to ask you a few questions just to make sure the serum has completely exited your system, as I was only able to take out the immediate threats in it," he explained. "What is your favourite food?"

"Mikans, obviously."

"I suppose that wasn't quite prodding enough," he scribbled some more on his clipboard. "If you had to date someone on your crew, who would it be?"

Her face scrunched up with mild disgust. "I don't think I could date any of them. If I had to choose, maybe Robin?"

"Interesting," he chuckled. "Is that something you'd tell anyone, though?"

"I don't actually know."

"Okay, I'll try one more question." He thought for a moment, resisting asking the one he really wanted to know the answer to. "What are your measurements?"

Her face flushed red and she covered her chest with her arms. "I'm not telling you that!"

"It seems the serum's effect is gone," he announced, hiding a smile at the embarrassed reaction. It wasn't like he didn't already know; the Straw Hat's cook had a big mouth and _loved _to boast about how beautiful his Nami-swan was. Turning a bit more serious, he moved to pull out the item he discretely bought in the town – an ultrasound monitor and instruments. "Okay, now for the actual reason we came in here. Time to see the kid."

Nami swallowed down the lump that formed in her throat as he approached her with a tube of gel. "_Cold_," she hissed when it came in contact with her stomach.

"Sorry," he apologised half-meaningfully, smearing it around with a small scanner he'd attached to the monitor. "Normally I would just use my scanning ability, but I think it would be more helpful to actually check in like this. Unfortunately, it brings with it the cold and messy gel."

"It's fine," she replied once it adjusted to her body heat. She watched eagerly as he turned on the monitor, filling it with just black and grey blotches. He moved the device around slowly with his eyes on the screen, stopping when most of it was black with a blob of grey in the middle.

"There it is," he pointed to the blob. He turned up the speaker, letting the sound of a steady heartbeat fill the room. "It's alive and holding steady. The serum doesn't seem to have affected it."

Tears started to well up in her eyes as she stared at the picture. "It's actually a living thing," she managed to say, her voice cracking. "Like I knew that already but it didn't really hit me before."

The pirate captain tried to keep a straight face, being filled with conflicting emotions. Any sane person would give in and ask the pressing question, but his previous reasoning didn't allow him to break. Instead, he distracted himself by capturing a video on the machine and then wiping the gel off her stomach with a warm, wet cloth.

"Law," she caught his attention as he brushed her skin with his ungloved hand, making sure there were no remnants.

"Nami?" he looked over at her, suddenly captivated by the look in her eyes.

Her hand shaking, she reached for his and flattened their palms against her stomach. There was no way they could feel anything this early, but with the sonogram playing in the background, it felt like they were at least connecting with it.

Her reasoning before sounded stupid when considering this was actually going to be a person. Wouldn't she regret the chances she didn't take? Would the baby forgive her for not? She'd always wanted to know about her real parents, even though it wasn't possible. If her child looked her in the eyes and asked where its dad was, would she still keep the answer locked away?

Besides, no marines would be hunting it if the secret was only told to those she trusted.

Taking a deep, shaky breath, she fought to find some simpler way to say what she needed to get off her chest. Her hand tensed against his, and she looked away to avoid whatever negative expression he might have. She finally felt words come out and was shocked when she heard herself speak. "It's yours, Law. You're the father."


	4. The queen's game

**I'll be moving my comments to the bottom of the story :)**

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

_**Previously...**_

_Taking a deep, shaky breath, she fought to find some simpler way to say what she needed to get off her chest. Her hand tensed against his, and she looked away to avoid whatever negative expression he might have. She finally felt words come out and was shocked when she heard herself speak. "It's yours, Law. You're the father."_

xxxxxxxxx

"Are… Wha… Really?" Law sputtered, losing his usual cool composure. His tone was nowhere near upset, and Nami glanced back at him to see his gold eyes filled with mixed emotions, but they were _shining_.

"I'm not sure what kind of woman you think I am, but I don't just sleep around," she stuck out her tongue in gentle teasing.

"I was starting to think something awful happened soon after. I would've asked directly, but I didn't want to drudge up anything," his tone was soft, making sure she wouldn't feel at all threatened from some negative reaction.

"I didn't want it to get out. Especially after what happened to Ace," she looked at their hands, still pressed together. "Also, it's going to be complicated. Different crews after all…"

"We'll figure it out," he promised, lowering his gaze to their hands as well. "I had guessed already that it's mine, but now that you told me, it feels so…"

"Real?"

"Yah."

Nami moved her hand away, letting him move as well, and looked up at his goofy grinning face. An expression she never thought she'd see on the notorious former warlord. "Great. I already get smothered enough by Doctor Law, I'm sure it's gonna be worse now."

"You just doubled it, actually," his lips formed a smirk, knowing his next words would confirm her worries. "You're moving into my room."

"Excuse me?" she sat up sharply, almost smacking her head into his. "No way. I like my privacy thank you very much." She didn't like the thought of someone, especially him, listening to her go through her morning sickness. It was only going to last a few more weeks, or so she read, but it was NOT pretty.

It was only her second concern that addressed the thought of sleeping with him. In the same bed. Every night. It was like a steady relationship, and boy was she not ready to be lurched into something so suddenly. She'd expected him to maybe be more paranoid over her during adventures, _maybe _humor her during mood swings since he now knew it was his fault, but she immediately found she was dead wrong.

"You lost your rights to be on your own when you decided to seduce me two months ago."

"Hey, _you _should've been the one with some sort of protection technique, with all your doctor and devil fruit junk," she protested. "I was only trying to see if you liked me. You're the one who turned it into more."

"Sorry, my mind was elsewhere when you basically decided to give me a _lap dance_ at the bar," he rolled his eyes.

"Keep rolling your eyes and they're going to stay like that," Nami lectured, suddenly easing the tension and putting a grin on both their faces. It was such a classic, cringy scold, and she felt weird that it easily slipped out.

"You're gonna be a good mom," Law said softly. "And I assure you, I'm going to take care of the good mom, meaning her room is going to be transferring to mine." He put aside the ultrasound equipment before moving to the door, not giving her another chance to protest. "Feel free to start whatever nesting you feel is necessary. I'll get some of my crew to move your things."

Once she was alone, she brushed her fingers against her stomach thinking about his reaction. The cold, calculating Trafalgar Law turned into an intimate, supportive man with the snap of a finger. Was he overwhelmed with sudden paternal love for the baby, or did he drop some sort of wall he'd put up for her?

Whichever it was, she decided she didn't like it. It was like she flipped a switch in him, making him see her now as some pushover potentially carrying Law 2.0 instead of an intriguing, attractive woman whose secrets were normally kept under lock and key. It's like he was ready to ignore her and everything she was. And she wasn't going to have it. If he wanted the kid, he was going to have to want _her_.

Like it or not, she wasn't going to let him treat her softly, though anyone else would be ecstatic. She didn't want him tamed – she liked him better as a mystery she could try to solve. Someone she could banter with whose intellect was striking. She refused to let him turn into mush.

She decided she would soon be reminding him who she was. How they got here in the first place. Now that the secret was out, she had nothing to lose by playing some of her games. She would determine whether he was there just for the baby, or if he was expressing care for heras well.

It was time to put on a little play.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

_"Purapurapurapurapura… Purapurapurapurapura… _Kacha."

"Hello? This is Luffy, the future pirate king!"

"It's Law."

"Oh hey! How's Nami?"

"She's doing well. We just did an ultrasound and saw the baby. It's developing well and is healthy," the doctor reported, keeping the fatherhood thing to himself for now. He was sure the navigator would prefer to tell them herself.

"What's an ultrasound?"

"It's a machine that can show the baby inside the stomach," another voice explained. Robin. He was glad she was on the call to explain, otherwise he wasn't sure he could simplify things enough for the rubber man to understand without losing his patience.

"That sounds neat!" Luffy replied, grinning widely enough for the snail to mimic.

"Is Nami going to talk to us?" Robin asked.

"I can get her. Give me a minute-"

"I'm right here," the woman waltzed over, having heard her captain's voice all the way from her room.

"NAMI!" A chorus of voices rippled through the snail, making the poor creature look very confused.

"Hey everyone!" she waved habitually although they couldn't see.

"Was the mega-sound weird?" Luffy asked.

"Mega-sound?"

"Ultrasound," Law corrected. "He means ultrasound."

"Oh, yah that was fine. It's got a shape and a steady heartbeat," she grinned.

"Is it a boy or girl?"

"We won't be able to tell for another month or two," the doctor answered for her. "We'll let you know when we find out."

"If it's a boy, name him Luffy!" the Straw Hat captain shouted.

Nami's lips were pulled in a frown as she shouted a firm 'no'. After a few more minutes of catching up, she asked to speak to her crew privately. With a nod, Law left the room but waited outside the door to listen in secretly. He wasn't the biggest fan of being kept in the dark. Though he knew he would most likely be beaten or at the very least yelled at if she found out, he was willing to take the risk.

"Did you finally do it?" Robin coaxed with a wink, referring to their conversation months earlier.

"I did," she sighed. "It sucks though. It looks like I'm being forced to switch rooms."

"What did you do? Play a prank on them?" Luffy piped in. "Did you do that cling wrap over the toilet bowl thing?"

"That was _YOU_?!" her orange hair could've stood on edge from her sudden anger. "You better _pray _we don't run into you for the next _year_."

After a moment of silence, the historian spoke again. "He ran away."

"Good."

It was Sanji's turn to speak. "Nami-swaaannn! It's me, your cook in a shiny apron!"

"Hi Sanji," she smiled softly. "How's it going?"

"My days are lonely without your beautiful presence and Robin is the only thing keeping me going on this ship full of idiots~" he sang. "How much longer until you come back?"

"Um… Things are a bit complicated right now. I'll be staying at least until the baby arrives, maybe even a bit longer just in case," she replied, not wanting to even think further about it. Now that Law knew everything, she wasn't quite sure if he'd even let her leave his ship.

"If it's because of medical things, I'm sure I can help once it's actually on the outside," Chopper cut in. "I've been reading up on how to treat infants and children."

"Thanks, that's very reassuring." She knew first-hand how smart the reindeer was in medicine, so she had no doubts they would stay in good hooves. Sadly, the child's health wasn't the main issue. Considering the father happened to be one of the most talented doctors in the world, she doubted he would let their own herbalist take care of anything either way.

"I think everything will work out fine," Robin said, unusually cheerful. "That is, unless the baby dies beforehand."

"Hey! Don't say things like that!" Nami shouted. "I'm already a bit worried. I don't need negative thoughts right now!"

"Yes, Robin. Now is not the time to make dark jokes!" Sanji scolded softly. "We have to send out good thoughts so Nami-swan can come back safely with a beautiful baby that I would be honoured to raise… As it's stand-in father!"

"Like hell you will!" She snapped.

Law stood tensely at the doorway. He was just about to burst in there and yell the exact same thing, but the redhead had beaten him to it. It didn't seem too often that she seemed to snap at the cook when he was lavishing her with attention, at least that he knew of.

The woman pinched the bridge of her nose and took a deep breath. "Sorry for shouting, but I don't need you to step in as a father." Her gaze softened and her positioning seemed to relax more. "I'll be fine being a single mother, especially if I have friends like you who have my back. I really love you guys."

The doctor felt like letting himself slump against the wall, as his heart felt like it was getting squeezed. The excitement of confirming the child was his had clouded his logical thinking. His almost-demand of switching her to his room was met with protest, and though he knew she was trying to fight him on it, her words basically fell on deaf ears. It hadn't quite occurred to him until now that she didn't suddenly need him just because she let him know some information.

Slip-ups and accidents happened all the time, and he'd seen a fair share of single mothers in different towns he'd visited, their husbands lost to the sea or not even existing in the first place. And this particular woman was one of the strongest he'd ever known – she could single-handedly command, navigate, and lead the ship of one of the emperors of the sea and his crew of powerhouses. Her confidence and perseverance combined with pure intelligence was nothing short of admirable, and he knew even his own feisty female crew member had mad respect for her.

She didn't need him to be with her through this. The only reason she was even in the sub was for protection during a high-profile type pregnancy. It probably would've ended up this way even if it was caused by someone else. She would've been fine on her own without interference. She didn't need _him_.

He knew it would ultimately be her decision to include him in this or not. The previous feeling of blind paternal affection turned to a dull ache of bitterness towards himself. It was stupid to think the reveal meant anything other than entrusting him with information that he'd find out sooner or later. He was thankful the one problem was finally dealt with, but it only opened paths to new ones.

"Alright, I'll call you again soon! Punch Luffy for me, please," Nami wrapped up her conversation with her crew, making the eavesdropper decide it was a good time to leave. He silently activated his _room _and teleported himself out of there, too focused on the bitter feeling to remember she would notice the area change colour slightly.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Nami paced back and forth in her room, trying to come up with even a start of a plan. She knew Law had been listening to her call with her crew, but was confused as to why he basically revealed it himself with his _room _activation. Was he being stupid? He was usually so careful with everything, so this HAD to be some sort of trick, or even potentially a display of the power he ultimately had over her in his ship.

If she continued to refuse moving rooms, he could do it himself in a snap. Was he threatening that?

"Damn him," she hissed. Confusing feelings for him or not, she wasn't about to let him tell her what to do and change her entire way of living with no regard to her feelings on it. Her privacy and personal space were at risk, and she felt like his display was a push to trap her in a corner. It was time to retaliate and let him know that he had no power over her. This was turning into a game of chess, and despite her appearance, she sure knew how to get the best out of even the pawns.

Scouring through her small guest closet, she picked out one of the dresses she'd gotten in the cave town. She remembered the expressions of not only her companions at the time but the others in the boutique and decided this would be the killer for sure. Her previous mission was still on, but less so to catch the captain's attention. Now it was a statement as well: _I'm not yours to control_.

She stripped off her current clothes, putting the new dress on in one swift motion. After finishing her ensemble up with accessories and a touch of makeup, she moved to the full-body mirror she'd been allowed to bring. She pulled a few locks of hair into a braided crown and stepped back, looking from different angles at her outfit. The dress was short, black, and figure hugging with a silk base and lace over top. There were full-length lace sleeves and in the front was a deep dip that went down to just above her naval, exposing just enough cleavage without looking slutty. She chose to put on a black choker necklace and gold hooped earrings that matched the bracelet her sister gave her, and switched her shoes to simple black heels.

Every evening the crew had dinner together, and though it was usually way earlier than this, she'd already been told they would still make something tonight. It seemed the cook feared letting a pregnant woman go hungry.

Her heels clicked loudly against the steel floors as she walked to the dining room. To her mild annoyance, Law turned a corner on the opposite side of the hall and saw her. She took a deep breath and focused on putting a bit of extra sway in her hips to draw his attention. "Hey Law. Are you on your way to dinner too?"

"Yes, but I feel a bit underdressed," he replied, looking down at his blue hoodie and standard print pants. "Were you told to dress up? Because no one seems to tell me these things and I'm always the odd one out."

"You're usually the only one on this ship not in a jumpsuit. It automatically singles you out," she teased. "I'm sure you'll be fine. I just felt like looking nice tonight." Continuing on her way, she could hear him walking a cautious distance behind her.

It wasn't far to the dining room, and upon entering, she was pleased to see most of the crew still made it with the exception of the usual night watchers and early risers. The long table was already filled with platters of vegetables, sliced meat, and bread. She almost giggled at the fact that the breads were set on the opposite side of the table from where the captain usually sat, as he had a major dislike for them. The cook, Hitode, was placing a pot of soup on the table as well before noticing the two enter the room, greeting them with a nod. She was surprised he could even see them at all, as he had long bags covering the eye facing them.

Normally she would sit beside Law, as it was more of the formal thing for a guest to do. Tonight was going to be a change, she'd decided, as she spotted a little bit of room between Shachi and Penguin. They were a few seats down from their leader. Perfect. She grabbed a chair and politely squeezed herself in, inwardly smirking at them not-so-subtly glancing at her half-exposed chest and turning bright red.

"H-hello Nami," Shachi stuttered, trying to ease any discomfort. "Are you feeling better?"

"What do you mean?" She tilted her head to the side, trying to think back.

"That truth serum thing's side effects seemed pretty bad," Penguin reminded her. "It looks like you can walk fine again, at least. That's good."

Nami was a bit shocked she'd almost forgotten about the ordeal. It did _not _feel like it was just a half day ago, with all the hectic baby news and mental battles against Law, she was surprised she hadn't collapsed again already. "Oh, yes I'm feeling much better. Thank you for asking."

"I heard you did an ultrasound. How did that go?" the redheaded man asked, not showing any signs of knowing anything big. If Law had told him about it, he was fantastic at hiding it.

She let out a small sigh of relief that the crew seemed clueless. "It went well. Everything apparently looks good."

"Either way, you're in the best hands," the other man assured. "He's never let anyone down, and even in super life-threatening situations, he's had _maybe_ two people die on him in our entire time together. He's a medical genius!"

A small smile formed on her face at their love and faith in their captain. "You're really proud to know him, huh?"

"Oh man, he saved us too once when we were teenagers."

"Beat the crap out of us first," Shachi cut in with an eye roll. "Man, I feel bad for everyone on the opposing side of him. Even back then he didn't need to use his devil fruit to take us out."

Penguin chuckled at the memory. "We were two stupid thugs in a bad living situation, but with the power of his fists, he brought us to his side and we decided to become pirates. We've been with him for over ten years already."

"It's kind of thanks to the bear too, I suppose," the former lazily pointed over to where Bepo, who was barely paying attention, habitually mumbled a 'sorry' upon hearing himself referred to as a bear.

"Wow, so you four are the founding members? Like I kind of figured, but that's pretty cool," Nami playfully twirled a lock of her hair around her finger. "I'm pretty much a 'founding member' of my own crew, too. Zoro was the first to join, and I was pretty much next, not that Luffy gave me much choice."

"He's pretty persistent, huh?" Shachi asked quietly, not realising he was starting to move in closer, focused on how she was now combing through her hair, directing his eyes to where the locks ended in her cleavage. Soon noticing what he was doing, he snapped up, looking over to where the captain was, thankful that Law was distracted by something else.

He earned a warning look from Penguin, though, who could clearly relate to the struggle. The woman was clearly a pro at using her beauty. They exchanged a glance, unsure if she was doing this on purpose. She feigned innocence, though, as she continued to talk.

"I'm pretty hungry after today. I don't think I've eaten since our lunch. By the way, why did you let me eat all that gross mismatched food? Thinking about it makes me a bit nauseous." She waited for the Heart captain to start taking from the spread, signaling for the rest to start as well. Loading her plate up with the food that was most likely made with the nutrients she needed in mind, she knew Law was probably instructing the cook on what to make. His consideration made her feel a bit bad about what she was trying to do currently, but no way was she going back on her plan.

"At least there's nothing deep fried this time," Penguin reasoned. "It was pretty unpleasant watching you, but it seemed like you would eat _us _if you didn't have exactly that."

"Hah, fair. I'm a slave to my cravings for now. Take away my food and lock me away if I get chubby, though," she joked. "I use my good looks more than anything else."

"We can tell, but there are a lot of us who would be slaughtered if we fell for you," he glanced pointedly over at Law.

"Hm, that makes my intentions a little more complicated, then," she sighed. Eyeing her plate, she picked up some bread, making eye contact with their captain before biting into it, grinning as he grimaced. The two noticed, sending her questioning looks. "Can I trust you two?" she asked after a few bites.

"Well, we can keep a secret if that's what you mean. Trustworthiness isn't exactly a quality pirates usually have," Shachi replied, taking a second to think about who he was talking to. "Well, I guess your crew is the exception."

"Good enough," she took a deep breath, trying to find the words to explain what she was doing without making herself sound bad or revealing her pregnancy secret. "Your captain is attempting to control me, and I want to make it known that I'm not his puppet, so let me pretend to flirt with you."

"Sorry. No way," the redhead crossed his arms in an 'x'. "He wouldn't punish _you_, but we're already on bathroom cleaning duty for a month for what happened in town. If he sees you flirting intentionally, we might be on barnacle scraping for a year."

"That seems a bit extreme, especially since he could get them off in like two seconds."

"Yes, but that's why it's a punishment for us," Penguin agreed with his crewmate. "If you want to drag someone else in this who has no fear, Ikkaku is your best bet. Also, this sounds like a mind-game problem and she's much better at that than us."

Nami pouted down at her food. "Well at least I don't have to waste effort."

"What? You weren't putting any effort up till now?" Shachi barely resisted shouting, though his hands did slap loudly on the table, causing some of the other crew to briefly glance over at him before returning to their dinners.

"Barely. Was it actually working?" the woman cocked her head to the side questionably.

"You're a natural talent," Penguin clapped quietly, shaking his head. "No wonder Law likes you. The Amazon Lily girls weren't nearly as alluring."

Her eyes widened and she dropped her fork, freezing in shock. "What?"

The men looked at each other with panic, Shachi flailing a bit with a mortified look while Penguin tried to come up with an excuse. "I-I mean, he's not blind and – wait, I mean you're the most interesting girl he's met? No, that's not…" He suddenly stood up, pushing his chair out with a loud '_screech'_. "I have to pee!" he announced before running off.

The woman was still frozen as the crew's attention was now focused on them. The remaining man felt it was best to stay silent, as there was no taking back what his friend had revealed, but he was filled with such panic that he got up and ran too.

"Is everything okay?" Law asked from the few seats away, jerking her out of her shocked state. She looked over at him and was overcome with confusion. His best friends had just revealed he liked her in a way that wasn't just from being allies, and it clearly had nothing to do with the baby. He wasn't the type to have feelings just from sleeping with someone, either. He wasn't the type to have feelings at all!

"Please excuse me," she stood as well. The pregnant hormones reminded her to bring her plate and cutlery before she ran off to find somewhere private to think things over.

Her motivations had just been completely shattered. Her brain was basically refusing to work now after all the mental back and forth, and a reboot seemed improbable for now. She ran into her room, locking the door behind her. Carefully placing the food on the end table, she faceplanted onto her bed, trying to process everything.

It was obvious by their original encounter that he was at least attracted to her, as most men were. She expected that. But him having romantic feelings was very unexpected, and it shed some light on his reaction to her reveal. She felt stupid for trying to read into it at the time – she'd _initiated _that tender moment. Why was she being suspicious and upset when he participated? What did she want him to do, reject her and the baby?

Her head and emotions were swirling in a seemingly never-ending vortex, and unluckily for her, it was starting to churn her stomach as well. She jumped off the bed, inwardly cursing as she fought with the lock on her door. Finally it yielded, and she sprinted down the hall to the nearest bathroom, praying it was unoccupied. The gods seemed to be on her side as it opened easily.

"This is _not _my day," she groaned after finishing up. Her face in the mirror now held smudged makeup and disheveled hair, and her eyes seemed to have gained bags underneath in the last ten minutes. She opened the door and peeked into the hall, sincerely hoping she wouldn't run into anyone.

Her small amount of luck was over, it seemed, as she spotted the last man she wanted to see leaning against the opposing wall, watching some of his crew start to pile into their rooms. He was holding a glass of water and a bottle of something she couldn't quite make out. _'I guess there's no point hiding in here,' _she thought, taking a deep breath and stepping out. "Oh… Hi Law," she pretended to have just noticed him as she emerged from the bathroom. "Do you need something?"

His attention moved to her, and he pushed himself off the wall. "Ikkaku heard you were sick so I brought these," he held out the items, and upon inspection, she found the bottle was full of flavoured chalk tablets. "Eat one of those and take sips of the water every few minutes until your stomach settles."

"Thank you," she accepted them, throwing back one of the tablets and wincing at the unsettling texture. She washed it down a bit, feeling slight relief from the crisp, cool water. Looking up at him, she noticed he seemed genuinely worried about her. "I'm clearly dealing with a lot in such a short amount of time… I think my stomach just couldn't keep up."

"I understand," he replied with a bit of a nod. "If it makes you feel any better, I won't force you to move rooms. Although, based on this, my room at least has a private bathroom in it."

Considering everything she'd seen, heard and learned today, she barely paused before giving her reply. "I'll think about it."

She could've sworn the corners of his lips curved up just a little bit, and she was hit again with the knowledge that he had a sort of soft spot for her. It was now the perfect opportunity to give him shit.

"So, what were you doing eavesdropping on my call?" she crossed her arms, looking at him accusingly. She was no longer mad about it, but she _was _curious. It wasn't like she would've told her crew something super damning about the Heart pirates; hell, they were a lot more organized and less stressful than the Straw Hats, and Luffy could stand to learn a thing or two.

"I was curious if you were going to tell them who the father is," he admitted, not trying to deny he'd been listening in.

"I think it would be better if I told them in person," she relaxed her stance with a sigh, thinking about how her crew might take the news. There was a high possibility of a fight by any of the monster trio for varied reasons. Sanji would be the only one to actually fight over the actual father identity. The other two would most likely try some worthiness challenge for him. "When I do, you might want to watch your back."

"Or we could get everyone drunk enough so they're fine with it, but not so drunk that they'd forget," he suggested jokingly, not too keen on fighting three people, two being fellow supernovas.

"As pirates, alcohol seems to be the answer to everything."

"Alcohol is never an answer… It's just the perfect wingman in any situation."

"You'd know better than anyone," she stuck her tongue out to tease him.

"Hey, _you _approached _me_."

"We're not having this back-and-forth again. Anyways, I should probably go…" she turned to walk away, but looked back at him briefly. "Thanks for the water and stuff. Goodnight, Law."

"Goodnight. Don't hesitate to get me if something comes up."

"'Kay."

Xxxxxxxxxx

Law, being a borderline insomniac, laid in bed and stared up at the dark ceiling of his room. Thoughts about Nami, the baby and their situation ran through his head, along with a mental replay of their town 'adventure'.

The second Shachi and Penguin burst into the island's clinic, he knew something had happened. It took everything in him to not stretch his _room_ across the entire island to find her. Thankfully, the woman he'd healed was able to narrow down a few locations to where the assailant could be, and he'd left in such a hurry that his crew had no chance of following him. There was no need, anyways. He was a man on a mission, adrenaline pumping enough for him to take out an army with his bare hands if need be.

He was reluctant to display how much he'd been concerned and angry over her abduction, barely being able to contain himself when he'd finally found her tied up and being interrogated. He'd briefly seen her struggle to keep back words to the point of injury, and once the disfigured man in front of her asked about the pregnancy… There was _no _way some random villain was going to find out the truth before he did.

Once he rescued Nami, he'd been so relieved to have her safe that he temporarily forgot the enemy he'd subdued, but it felt so _good _to plunge his sword straight into his flesh. It was a punishment he rarely gave, saving the effort for more meaningful spats such as this. The man's warning still rang in his head, though. _'This is just the beginning of your troubles from me, girlie.'_

Maybe he should've killed him? He didn't doubt for a second that the man would be vengeful enough to try to do something, but the farther they got from the island, the more he thought there wasn't anything he _could _do.

The reveal that he was the father shook him. He thought he'd been prepared for that truth to come out, but there was just something in the moment that caught him off guard, changing his character for just a moment. And he _knew _it freaked her out, even to the point of trying to show off aloof she was. Now _that _was a delight to see – using a revealing dress to try to seduce his best friends was more entertaining than anything. Watching them struggle was funny enough to let the situation go.

And then there was the one thing he was confused about: the sudden change in behaviour in the three. There wasn't much that could send both his strongest crewmates running with panic, and even less for what could make the woman so distraught she ended up sick. He knew there was no way he could force the answer out of any of them, and decided to let it slip his mind for now. If it was super important, it would come out eventually.

Finally, after all his thinking, he started to drift asleep. A bitter growl almost came out when someone knocked on his door, and he opened it with his ability to avoid leaving his bed. "Yes?" he asked, his voice a bit hoarse from resting so long.

"Can I come in?" a feminine voice called softly.

He sat up, instantly recognizing it as the woman of his thoughts. "Of course." He patted the spot beside him, allowing her to climb on his bed.

"I'm still not feeling too great, and I'm a bit worried about the baby… So if it's alright, can I sleep here tonight? We can call it a trial for me moving rooms if you want," she looked down, fiddling with her thumbs while waiting for his answer.

After a long pause, mostly from being half asleep, he agreed. "Of course. If you still feel bad tomorrow, I can do a checkup as well."

"Thank you," she whispered, moving to the edge of the bed and laying down on top of the blanket.

With a sigh, he activated his ability again and swapped her with the covers. "You'll get worse if you're cold," he lectured. "Don't be shy. We've slept together before, after all."

In the darkness he could barely make out her head turning, probably to glare, but she seemed too tired to argue. He briefly wondered what time it was, as his thoughts made it seem to pass quickly most of the time. He usually got a solid three to five hours of sleep a night if he was lucky, so zoning out until dawn wasn't unusual.

The sound of her steady breathing and the eventual presence of her body heat was oddly calming, being enough to lull him to sleep as well. _'Looks like I might win this one,'_ he thought before his mind went completely blank into the darkness that he called dreaming.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Hello everyone! I almost didn't make the deadline so I'm sorry if this seems a little rushed haha. The way this had been written is that this is a re-written second draft, so I've been adding more chapters and content than the original had. A good example of this was actually a common review I got - that the reveal of the father was too quick. The original draft didn't even have that island. He found out like three pages in. So don't worry that it might seem a bit rushed for reveals as the secret isn't what the story is about.**

**This chapter also wasn't pre-written so it took me a while to connect everything in such a boring setting (sorry Polar Tang). I'm sure I'll be posting the next chapter sooner than December 8th since everything's back on track, so I hope you'll enjoy what's coming. There was a lot of back-and-forth thinking in this chapter and it was a bit hard to follow, but these two are smarter than I am so it's what I imagine smart people to be like ;)**

**Also, small shoutout to my fav author who also posted today. This is a great day for LawxNami shippers fanfiction-wise. I will be reading her next chapter as soon as I post this, and hopefully the text won't be messed up the first time.**


	5. Small steps

Law awoke to the urgent rustling of sheets, quick footsteps and a door slamming. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he looked at his bedroom door and figured that was the one his visitor had gone through. Until he heard coughing coming from his private bathroom. _'Right. Pregnant woman.'_

He got dressed and left the room to give her some privacy, and to get her some more water and something to settle her stomach. By the time he got back, she was laying down again and waiting for him. "Morning," she half-waved. "Sorry if I woke you up."

"It's fine," he replied, placing the glass on the end table and handing her a plate of toast with ginger jam on it. "This should help. Whole grains are one of the recommended foods for pregnancy, and the ginger should settle your stomach."

"I'm surprised you willingly carried your worst enemy here," she teased before taking a bite.

"I suppose it's fine as long as I'm not the one who has to eat it." After she finished the breakfast, he handed her the water and moved to the door with the plate in hand. "I still have to check on my crew. Feel free to stay here and rest."

"Thanks… For everything," she muttered, looking to the side. She was clearly embarrassed that after all her protesting and uncertainty, she'd ended up there.

He only gave a reassuring smile. It wouldn't be good to press her on what happened in case it scared her off – she seemed more willing than ever to switch rooms, and poking the bear would close that opportunity faster than he could summon his devil fruit power.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Nami watched him leave the bedroom and fell back into the pillows with a deep sigh. How did she end up here? She barely remembered the disfigured face from her nightmare, but the overwhelming feeling of waking up alone and _terrified _for the first time in years was enough for her body to move on its own. She'd been lucky enough to have peaceful nights for the past month, but the ordeal yesterday must've scarred her mind.

That and the fact she was still not feeling well was enough for her to accept Law's offer from last night to bug him. She was thankful he wasn't being weird about it, since she was still in a state of confusion. He'd been fine to sleep with and he didn't even try to touch her in any way. It was hard to believe that he liked her, but he _was _the type of man who could show restraint. The past month proved that.

"Ugh, maybe I _should _just move in here," she mumbled to herself. It was hard to admit, but she hated sleeping alone in the first place. Pretty much since she'd joined her beloved Straw Hat group, she had a roommate, be it Vivi or Robin.

Besides, having a doctor at her side like this wouldn't be all that bad. He was proving himself useful and attentive, and it was very appreciated. The pregnancy would probably go a lot smoother as well, and as long as there were boundaries, she couldn't think of a good reason to not do this anymore. He already proved himself on her main privacy issue.

_'Fine," _she thought as she started to drift back to sleep. _'His bed is more comfortable than mine, anyways.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

It didn't seem like too long before she was woken up again by a light knock on the door. She barely blinked the sleep away before it opened and Ikkaku's head poked through. "Hey, you're awake," she said quietly. "They wanted me to see if you were ready for lunch."

"What? That late already?" she sat up quickly, holding her head from a sudden rush. "I'll be a few minutes, but I _am _hungry."

"I'll let them know, then," the woman smiled before dipping out.

"Wait!" Nami called after her, stopping her from closing the door. She remembered the dynamic duo's advice to ask her for help with Law. "Can we talk?"

"Of course! I've been dying for some girl talk." She closed the door behind her and joined her on the bed. "What's up?"

She decided to pour out everything that had been on her mind, as holding it all in was determined to be unhealthy at this point. The mind games, the discomfort of pregnancy, and the whole situation with Law were taking their toll, and it all spilled out in the open.

"I just don't know what I should be doing, and I usually talk these things out when I'm overwhelmed but I'm away from my family and I don't want to cause tension between any of you guys and your captain," she finished.

Ikkaku was quiet for a minute before breaking into a wide grin. "Nami, we all knew that already! The important thing here is figuring out how _you _feel. Once you do that, things might become clearer." She slapped her hand on the redhead's shoulder with a laugh. "And don't worry about causing problems within our crew. You're temporarily one of us, so cause some scenes. Make things more interesting."

"Things are interesting enough," Nami cracked a smile, already feeling better. "I don't know how to cause the stir you want."

"Well, last night at dinner was pretty funny. Whatever you put the idiots through was hilarious."

"Not in the moment," she groaned, pulling a pillow over her face in embarrassment. "What happened after I left?"

"Honestly, not much. We've gotten used to not asking questions when it comes to you Straw Hats," she teased.

"Hah hah."

Ikkaku stood to leave, sensing it was time to let her change. "I'll see you at the table. Wear something raunchy again – the guys' reactions are great."

"Why don't_ you_ wear something like that?"

"It won't really work on them if I do it since they _know _there is no way in hell I would go for any of them," she winked. "I'll tell you more about it later though."

And with that, she left Nami alone again to groggily get off the bed. Her legs tingled, trying to adjust to being used for the first time in half a day. She was used to jumping around every few hours, be it from sudden storms in the grand line that needed her expert skills to avoid, or her more recent situation of restlessness being underwater that late night strolls would ease.

She looked in the drawers before realising this wasn't her room yet. "Man, I think I'm losing my mind," she sighed, shaking her head. Her room was way down the hall, and she didn't quite feel like walking all that way. An idea suddenly popped in her head: if Law wanted her to move into his room so badly, she would hold him to the regular room-sharing standards.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"There's no possible way that's true!"

"I saw it with my own eyes!"

Law pinched the bridge of his nose, listening to Shachi and Penguin argue. It was barely noon, but there wasn't enough time in the day for him to start caring about today's argument.

"I'm telling you, Bepo definitely ate a worm when we were fishing. Either that, or he was putting it in his mouth to give it a rocket boost to freedom!" Shachi gestured wildly, flailing his arms enough to almost smack his friend in the face.

"This conversation is pointless," Penguin replied, just barely dodging the arms. "I doubt it's true, but who even cares!"

"Why not just ask him directly?" their captain pointed to the doorway where the mink had just appeared. The two scampered up to him in the blink of an eye and started pressing him.

"Bepo, admit to our elected ship moron that you ate a worm," the redhead demanded.

The poor bear held up his hands in defense and tried to step back. "I-I don't know what you're talking about…" he stammered.

"Hey, I'm not elected moron, you are! Especially since you're clearly wrong about this!" Penguin yelled to his partner.

"This is the most boring, pointless, and idiotic argument I've ever heard in my life," Ikkaku called over, grabbing their attention. She pulled out a chair at the table and sat across from her captain. "Nami's joining us soon, so wrap it up."

"Sorry…" Bepo hung his head.

"Not your fault we're on the same ship as idiots," Law chimed in again between mouthfuls of his lunch.

The two ran over to him, each standing on one side. "We're not just your crew, we're you're brothers! How could you be so mean?"

"Keep bothering me and you won't even be whole bodies anymore."

Brushing aside the threat, they continued to bother him. "So cruel… So _heart_less," Shachi held his hands into a heart shape before breaking it.

"You wouldn't dismember us in front of Nami, would you? It could scar her for life," Penguin taunted in his most annoying baby-talk voice.

Ikkaku stifled her laughter as the feared captain started to look more and more like an annoyed little boy. The woman was definitely his weak point, as he normally would've at least activated his ability to threaten them by now, but he knew she was on her way and could appear at any time. _'Things get interesting because of her even if she's not around,'_ she thought with a smile. _'This is fun.'_

They must've thought about her enough to summon her. She appeared in the doorway wearing only a very baggy shirt and a cocky smirk directed at the captain. "Good morning, _roomie_," she sauntered in and sat down next to him, ignoring the shocked silence from the two other men and the mink. "Hope you don't mind, but I borrowed your clothes. I figured it's okay since roomies _always _share clothes. And shoes. And makeup, books, weapons-"

"First of all, there is absolutely no way I'm letting you touch my nodachi. Second, I realise I should've provided you with a set of clothes when I brought you breakfast out of the goodness of my heart this morning. I'm _sorry,_' he apologised sarcastically. "You're welcome to parade around in any of my loose-fitting clothes. It only brands you, you know."

Nami's face grew red, but she didn't back down as she waited for the reaction she'd been looking forward to since this morning. She glanced over at Ikkaku, who was staring intently at her captain's face in surprise that it was taking him so long to think about her words.

He continued with his meal for another few seconds before dropping his fork. "Wait. _Roomie_?"

"That's what it's called when you share a room. Get with the times," she teased, piling some of the food on the table onto her plate. "Oh, do you think you could move my dressers and things? Pregnant women shouldn't be exerting themselves."

"Says who?"

"You. Weren't you upset a few days ago just from me walking around the ship and getting my own food?"

"Tch." He crammed food in his mouth just to prevent answering her.

"Okay, wait one second. _WHAT_?!" Shachi finally spoke, his shock having worn off. "Roomies?"

"Yes, it's pretty normal for an expecting couple to share a room," Ikkaku grinned towards the other woman.

"Ikkaku!"

"Expecting couple?" Penguin cocked his head. "So you finally told him?"

"I didn't even tell you! How did you know?!"

"Girl, we all knew," the brunette chuckled, leaning back in her chair and enjoying the change of entertainment. "Well, most of us at least."

"Uh… Excuse me," Bepo raised his hand. "I don't know what's going on."

"Oh, I'll explain!" Shachi volunteered, turning to the mink. "You see, when a girl and a boy love each other _very much_, or in this case, got _very drunk_, they-"

"If you don't shut up right now I am going to strip you of your vocal chords," Law growled, activating his room to show he meant business.

"But you don't want to scar Nami, right?" he protested.

"I wouldn't mind you not having vocal chords for the next week," the woman glared. "Do _not _finish whatever stupid explanation or I will let Law take them _and _I will charge you 500,000 belli for slander."

"It's not slander if it's true and not mean."

"Law, do it."

Shachi held up his hands. "No! No! I'm sorry! I won't say anything else."

"Good."

Penguin decided to finish the explanation in a simpler and less disturbing way, summing it up to just a few words. "Bepo, Nami and the captain are the parents of her baby so they'll be sharing a room."

"Okay, that makes sense," the bear looked over at the two. "Sorry for not understanding before… But I am happy for you!"

"Thank you, Bepo," Nami smiled softly.

"You can use me as a pillow anytime you want now! The captain naps on me a lot and you're his mate so I can let you do it too."

"M-mate?!" she jumped up, face brighter than the sun. "No, no, it's not like that-"

"But if the baby belongs to both of you, you're mates, right?"

Ikkaku, Shachi and Penguin tried and failed to hold in their laughter at the couple in question. The fact that the navigator was wearing Law's shirt made the situation even funnier, and harder to deny.

"I'm going to leave now," the captain announced, disappearing in a flash. They'd almost forgotten his ability was still activated.

"I'm going to die," Nami groaned, moving her food and letting her face fall on the table.

"Sorry!" Bepo yelled, almost folding in half to bow his apology. "Please don't die!"

"Okay, _that _was interesting," the amused woman laughed. "It's exactly what I was talking about earlier!"

"Ugh. I'm not very hungry anymore."

The crew suddenly looked worried. "No, you have to eat," Penguin coaxed. "If the captain finds out we're the reason you aren't getting nutrients, he will kill us."

"What's one meal?"

"All of these meals are put together specifically focusing on what _you _need right now. Like, it's also good for us and tastes fine, but Hitode is under a lot of pressure to make sure you're kept healthy with every meal," Ikkaku explained, suddenly serious. "Please eat at least a few bites of everything."

"Sanji would kill me if I wasted any food," she sighed, pulling the plate back to her. "It's a habit to finish everything at this point."

"Good. It's a win-win-win."

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

After a very filling lunch, the navigator decided to go to her old room to start moving a few things over, and to get out of wearing just a shirt. The crew she'd passed on the way were already giving her strange looks, reminding her that what Law had said was true – wearing a man's shirt and nothing else was like being branded. Not that it was much of a problem to his crew. Unlike hers, they could mind their own business.

Once she arrived at her room, she was surprised to find only a light blue sundress left draped on a stripped bed. The remainder of the room had been emptied. The walls were bare, the desk was clean and the drawers were all empty with one of the dressers missing. She had an inkling of who would be able to pull this off in such a short amount of time, noting to thank him once she changed.

"Wow, I haven't worn this in a while," she found herself saying out loud. It was a loose sundress with spaghetti straps. The light blue colour contrasted her bright orange hair nicely, making her feel like some sort of soft maiden. She twirled once to watch the skirt flare up and smiled, instantly put in a good mood. "The magic of fashion."

She made her way to the new room, entering through the wide-open door. Law was inside, hanging some of her clothes in the closet. "Welcome," he gestured half-heartedly. "I just moved your dresser with everything in it, but everything else needs to be sorted."

Now that it was the daytime and she was not in any rush, she could really look at the room. From the doorway, there were now two dressers on the right and a door that led to the bathroom. On the left was a bookshelf filled mostly with now both their books. His medical ones were in the medical bay, leaving this one for mostly fiction or things they were interested in. Next to the bookshelf was a big wooden desk with a chair, and she was surprised to see a few pictures on it.

There was one of his entire crew, a really old one with burned edges that seemed to be him and his family, and one with a blond man with a lot of makeup and a wide grin. The rest of the desk had neatly organized notes and a few pencils. Next along the wall was a decently sized closet that looked almost unused before her clothes as there was only a cloak or two hanging inside.

The queen bed was in the middle of the room and had dark blue sheets and blankets, leaving her pretty underwhelmed. Not that the grey of her previous room was any better. There was an end table for each side of the bed, both holding lamps. The side Law obviously slept on had a few miscellaneous items on the table, but she wasn't able to look too closely before the man grabbed her attention.

"I'll leave the bathroom items for you to move," he hinted. "I'm going to the medical bay for a bit if you need anything. Feel free to decorate or adjust things, but don't touch the pictures or notes."

"Is it okay if I pin up some of my maps on the wall?"

"My previous statement stands. Do what you like." He gave her a small smile to reassure her. "I trust you won't make this place a disaster."

"Okay, thank you," she said before moving aside so he could leave her to it. She was thankful he'd done most of the moving, especially in such a short time. She still felt exhausted from yesterday, and moving her things from the main crew bathroom to the private one was all she felt she could do today.

Still, she ended up enlisting the help of her headache inducers as payback. They were _lucky _she didn't charge them actual money. Just labour. She only made them carry the boxes, not letting them touch her personal items. It was weird how toiletries were the most private of her things but everyone's were on display in their shared bathroom.

Once the boxes were loaded into her new room, she thanked them and let them go. It didn't take long to arrange things in the bathroom, and she was in a good enough mood to work on other parts. The first thing on her list: putting up maps.

She had some charts stored in Bepo's navigation room, but there were a few she liked to keep in her more personal areas at all times. Her chart of Conomi Islands, a world map of places she'd travelled that now had some special markings for 'with the Heart Pirates', a few quick sketches of Skypiea, and a fairly detailed chart of fish-man island. She at least trusted Law enough to not steal any of her charts, even the rare ones that could potentially be sold, as they could put the residents of those places in danger and god knows Luffy would _not _be happy.

Pins in hand, she climbed carefully on the desk to put the charts on the wall. "Oh no!" she gasped as she knocked over one of the pictures. She breathed a sigh of relief when she picked it up. It was only the one of the whole crew, and the frame and glass seemed to be intact. The picture inside had shuffled a bit, so she opened the back to reposition it, thinking it would be alright even though she'd been told not to touch the pictures.

There was a small flap on one of the sides with some part of an image on it. Curious, she peeled the photo out of the frame and smoothed the whole thing out. The picture itself was pretty standard for a crew, especially such a big one. Everyone stood in a plain white boiler suit except for Law and Bepo, who were on the far left of the page with the rest of the main gang. Except… Squinting further, there was someone in the picture she didn't recognise standing on Law's right side.

It was a woman, and not Ikkaku. This woman had pixie cut platinum blonde hair, vibrant blue eyes and was holding Kikoku, Law's sword. Only Bepo ever held his sword, if anyone. Nami's eyes narrowed with mild jealousy and suspicion. It was her that was folded out of the picture for some reason, and she knew she couldn't just ask without revealing that she had in fact defied his one request.

Was this a past girlfriend? What happened to her? Had Law liked this mystery woman more than her, the newly revealed mother of hid child? Shaking away all those thoughts, she tried to focus on putting the picture back in the frame the way it was. The vibrant blue eyes still pierced her mind, making her feel like there was something… _Familiar _about them. She had met a lot of people, so she wouldn't be surprised if her crew had stumbled across her island or something at some point.

All these new questions made her lose her motivation to get anything else done. She knew it was probably nothing to be worried about, since pirates _did_ sometimes leave crews, especially ones of this size, but she couldn't help the jealousy welling up in her heart. She finally made a decision to accept Law a bit more personally, and here he was keeping a picture with a hidden woman in it.

Her logical side won only by a little bit, urging her to go visit him in the medical bay to calm down and see nothing was wrong.

"Hey," she announced her presence as she walked in.

He didn't even look up from his notes, only humming a reply. She waited for him to finish whatever he was doing. It wasn't as if he was ignoring her completely; she got absorbed in her work in the same way a lot of the time and the last thing she liked was someone begging to interrupt.

After a few minutes of him scribbling, he finally turned around. "What do you need?"

"I'm just taking a break from moving things around," she answered, folding her arms behind her back and walking forward. "What are you working on?"

"Making a full report on what happened yesterday and the treatments I had to administer to you and that one girl. Can't remember her name for the life of me, though."

She cracked a smile. Clearly the girl's attempted flirting didn't stick at all. "I think her name was Jenna."

"Ah. Thank you." He scribbled it down before closing his notebook. "That island was very intriguing, from both a medical and a geological standpoint."

"I would've loved to study that sand vortex… From a distance," she agreed. "That creep sure makes me want to stay a whole ocean away from it, though."

"It was a very intense day yesterday," he sighed. "It's a good thing we have a while before we need to go to a certain island."

Nami froze. "We're still surfacing before that, right? I don't think I could survive staying down here-"

"Trust me, you won't be the only person driven crazy if we don't resurface every few days. There are a few islands on the way that look innocent enough, but we'll only be getting supplies and fresh air. No shopping," he gave a pointed look. "And we'll be sticking together. We can't risk things going south again."

"Agreed."

Satisfied with his normality, her burning questions from before didn't seem as important. If there really was something up with that woman, she would find out eventually. She left the medical bay to find Bepo and go over a few charts so Law could get back to work.

* * *

**Hi! I somehow made it to uploading on the right day even though it's at night. I actually somehow made this into a way longer chapter and decided to split it in half, so I might upload the next part sooner as a Christmas present to you all ;) This draft is FINALLY merging with the other one that I had done so much timeline research on so things should definitely start sailing smoothly again.**

**Also, I just have to say that I love Ikkaku. I think we all agree she would be some sort of engineer or mechanic full of attitude like that one girl from Atlantis and it's so funny to see the same perspective in different stories. I'm so glad she exists, otherwise Nami would go absolutely crazy in a sub full of guys she would be hesitant to knock out over anything caused by plain stupidity. Which is 100% of the time.**


	6. Reunited

The entire crew was once again gathered for dinner. This time, Nami sat next to the captain without any plans to mess with him. She felt the need for mind games was over, and since they were now sharing a room as well, it was time for them to try to be open. Not that it came easy to either of them.

They'd decided just before they entered that Law would make an announcement to the whole crew about what was going on.

"Everyone, I have an announcement," he started, grabbing their attention. The chatter stopped in the room as they all turned to look at him. "Nami's not just here because she's pregnant and we're the best protection for her. She's also here because it's _my_ child. Please continue to treat her with the usual friendliness and hospitality you've shown so far."

"We already knew!" most of the crew replied in unison, causing the two to look at each other in unison.

"What? How?" Nami asked, astonished and mildly embarrassed. The lunch buddies hadn't been lying earlier, apparently.

"You do _not _want to know," Ikkaku replied, covering the mouths of the troublemakers beside her.

Only a few of the crew seemed surprised, and they were the ones that didn't interact too much with them in the first place, being stationed at a few remote and barely used spots in the sub. Gossip rarely got to them in their solitude.

With a timid smile, Nami answered a few sudden questions about the state of the baby with Law stepping in for some technical medical terms. The mood was lightened and two of the pirates decided to go closer to the parents and tease them a bit. Shachi and Penguin stood next to the Straw Hat and asked too loudly if she and Law had been secret lovers the whole time, clearly not satisfied with only almost getting dismembered earlier at lunch.

With her mouth flung open with embarrassment, the woman glanced at the captain, silently begging him to save her.

"Yes," Law finally spoke, earning a loud _'WHAAA?!' _from everyone, including the pregnant woman.

"That's not true!" she protested, finding her voice with help from anger.

"Have you been with anyone else since…" the man gestured to her stomach.

"That's not how this works and you know it!" she yelled, mortified that he brought these details up in front of his whole crew.

"Well, it's not like you have a choice whether you're my lover or not now," the pirate captain smirked.

Nami crossed her arms with an exasperated huff. "I always have a choice."

Shachi backed up lightly, afraid of retaliation towards his next words. "Sorry, miss, but I think you're stuck with him now."

"We apologise for all of your future endeavors with our captain," Penguin chimed in, earning a glare from his leader.

The topic got changed almost right away to prevent a re-enactment of earlier, and the rest of dinner was filled with laughter at the duo's expense. They hadn't had such a lively meal with all of them in a while, and it made Nami feel at ease, but homesick at the same time. Thoughts of the Sunny and her crew made her heart ache for them. Her family.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

The two were soon back in the bedroom, though the woman tried her hardest to procrastinate. She even made a call to Luffy to reveal everything, which turned into an hour-long conversation with various members of her crew, and a scolding for Sanji. Law couldn't help but roll his eyes in distaste when the man wouldn't stop crying about 'Nami-swan'.

In the bedroom, she decided to at least get some more decorating work done with putting up some pictures of her crew on the vacant night table, which she correctly guessed was hers. Having just heard their voices, she smiled and hummed happily at seeing their faces. Most of them were preferred when their mouths weren't producing sounds anyways.

She also laid out her bigger map on the desk with Law's permission. He looked over it as she put a few more things in her end table, impressed with how detailed it was and how many places they had gone. His own crew traveled in a submarine, but they hadn't quite stopped at some of the more remote places that the Straw Hats did. _'Probably bringing on trouble as usual,' _he thought to himself.

Nami struggled to make everything look reasonably perfect. She was trying to buy herself some time before the inevitable happened – sharing a bed with the surgeon of death. Last night didn't count in her mind since it was brought on by fear. She may have agreed to this, but it still felt a bit awkward. Suppressing a yawn, she admitted to herself she was very tired and struggling to keep her eyes open. The thought of sleeping next to a dangerous man left her feeling both terrified and exhilarated. How had she gotten the courage to sleep with him months ago?!

Alcohol. It was a miracle worker to numb inhibitions.

She froze midwn, noticing the man looking at her. _Damn._ She couldn't try to hide her sleepiness anymore, and with that thought she figured that she was more terrified than anything.

It wasn't as if she thought he was going to hurt her, and definitely not the baby. She couldn't quite place her finger on why she was almost shaking, but the back of her mind was telling her it was because she was willingly vulnerable. All cards were on the table, and stuck in in a room on a submarine with the _captain_, she didn't have a usual escape plan.

The woman also shuffled uncomfortably at the thought that he might stay up and watch her all night. The defined lines under his eyes suggested he might be an insomniac. Her heart sped up at the thought, though, filling her with a nervousness. Maybe he would because he cared about her that much?

_'He cares about the baby more than me,' _she pouted inwardly. It made sense, as it would be his own offspring, but she hated that she was most likely going to just be his child's mother to him, mild feelings for her or not. _'Is there something more that I want from this?'_

She thought back to dinner. He'd basically claimed possession over her love life! It didn't necessarily mean that he would be giving her the attention that she would need in that way. Growling, she realised that unless something worked out with him, her dating scene was now over.

Her head shook, clearing out all the anxious thoughts. She was a free pirate. No one could make her do anything or claim possession over her. Not anymore.

"Let's go to bed," Law broke her train of thought, as if he could sense her unease.

With a sigh, she grabbed a loose crop top and some comfortable pajama shorts from her dresser. She then went into the bathroom, clothes in hand. "Don't you dare peek, or it will cost you ten thousand belli for every second," she threatened, closing the door and turning the lock pointedly. She knew that no amount of locks could keep him out of where he wanted to be with that damn devil fruit ability. Her hope was that he would at least respect her privacy.

He did.

After changing and brushing her teeth and hair, she stepped out of the bathroom. Her arms almost moved on their own to cover her bare skin, feeling unusually self conscious as she was now under his gaze. It was rare that she felt so vulnerable under a man's stare, and even more rare was that she thought maybe her choice of clothing was a bit _too _revealing.

Nevertheless, she kept her arms to her side and feigned confidence, walking to what was now her side of the bed. Luckily enough, it was the side that she normally liked to sleep on. She lifted the blue comforter, slipping under. "For some reason, I thought this bed would be weirdly difficult to sleep on," she admitted out loud.

"This firmness is best for bone structure and blood circulation if you sleep on your back," he replied. "When your stomach starts growing, I will make it softer as you will most likely be sleeping on your side all the time. If you do already, let me know."

She rolled her eyes. _'Such a doctor. How is he even scary again?'_

"I can control the firmness with my ability, if that's what you're wondering."

_'Right. Scary dissection devil fruit powers. One of the strongest guys I know of. That's how.'_

"I sleep on my back, so it's fine," she answered, lowering herself further. The moment her head hit the pillow, she felt her eyes instinctively closing. It had been a long few days. Somehow, the comfort of the bed eased her worries about sharing the room for the foreseeable future. She decided to stick to the positive thoughts, especially the fact that if they were somehow attacked, she was basically in contact with one of the former war lords that could easily protect them both.

It wasn't long before said man finished getting ready and crawled into the other side of the bed, being mindful of her unease and keeping an invisible line between the halves. Turning the lamp off, he made himself comfortable. "Goodnight."

"Night." She appreciated that he was actually giving her some space. Raising her arm over her head and resting one on her stomach, she tried to get used to the sound of his light breathing. She knew he wouldn't fall asleep for a while yet, but she had no trouble drifting off herself.

xxxx

_A month and a half later_

xxxx

Nami inhaled deeply with a smile, excited to finally be above the ocean again. They had resurfaced, and she was the first onto the open deck. There was still puddles of water all over, but she didn't care about getting her feet wet as she ran around giddily under the sun.

"You're acting like we haven't resurfaced for weeks," Law sighed, leaning against the open door. "We were just up three days ago."

"There hasn't been sunshine to dance under in two weeks though," she replied, skipping along the deck and soaking up the sunlight. It felt like all her problems melted away as the beams warmed her skin.

The captain watched her with a small smile. It had been a while since she'd looked so happy. It was like she was some sort of cat basking in the light.

She twirled around a few times before something caught her eye on the horizon. Running to the side rails, she started to squeal with glee as a familiar ship approached. "I can't believe they're on time… I'm so excited to see them!" She jumped up and down, causing the man to move closer in case she slipped.

"Acting childish is going to get you hurt, and if you fall…" he trailed off, looking at her with worry. Her displays of agility were starting to get riskier since her stomach now was starting to get a small, firm bump at the base. Her general wardrobe consisting of revealing clothing could show anyone that she was pregnant. To conceal it, she had been wearing looser dresses recently. Law's personal favourite ended up being sundresses. He felt they made her seem both matriarchal and gentle, and her attitude clashed in an oddly good way. It was the similar effect of putting salt in cookies.

Today, though, it was back to normal with a pink crop top and a short black skirt.

"If I fall, you have to catch me or I'll charge you a million belli for damages," she stuck her tongue out in reply before re-focusing.

The ship got closer and closer, and they could both hear distant shouting. The voice was unmistakable – Luffy, possibly the most hyperactive captain in the grand line.

_"OI! NAMI! WE'RE ALMOST THERE!" _they heard.

"We can see that, idiot," Nami laughed.

Seeing her laugh so happily made the positive feeling contagious enough to spread through the normally cold-hearted captain.

He'd finally come to terms with his true feelings after being closer with her in the past while. In this situation, with _this _woman, anyone would be crazy to _not _feel anything romantic towards her. It wasn't like he was dying to tell her but if she asked, he wouldn't lie.

Glancing down at her stomach, a surge of possession ran through him. It had been happening frequently. He wanted to touch it… Touch _her_. To wrap his arms around her and hold her close. To take in the scent of her hair and feel of her skin. The combination of his newfound affection and her pregnancy pheromones were really getting to him, and it was getting hard for him to keep his composure.

Thankfully, he was snapped out of his trance with the light tapping of the ships connecting. He looked down and saw he was inches away from touching her. The rest of the Heart Pirates burst through the door and he subtly stepped back to where he was initially.

The crew members chattered amongst themselves with excitement, knowing there would soon be a party as the Straw Hats never seemed to need a reason to celebrate and have some sort of feast.

A door opened at the side of the Sunny dramatically with Franky, the cyborg ship hand, waiting to welcome them aboard. "Nami! It's been a _SUUPER _long time since I've seen you!" He clasped his arms together over his head in his legendary pose.

"_NAAAAMMMMIIIIIIIII!" _Luffy's voice once again rang throughout the area, this time from straight above. Law watched as he jumped off the deck, stretching his rubber arms towards his navigator.

"Room!" he shouted, activating his power and forming a bubble around his deck and the falling man. "Shambles!" he turned his wrist, switching Luffy with an empty barrel. He then took out his sword and cut up the wooden container into enough small pieces that they landed in a pile at a safe distance.

"Hey, what was that for?" the other captain got up off the floor, scratching his head.

"You can't just jump on a pregnant woman, idiot," Law growled, clenching his fist in annoyance.

"Oh." The straw hat turned to the woman. "Sorry Nami. I guess it's a good thing that you have a doctor with you."

"He doesn't need medical training to know you shouldn't jump on her," Usopp, the crew's sniper, called from the higher ship deck.

"Just don't do anything like that again for the next year or so, alright?" Nami grumbled, whacking him lightly over the head.

"You got it!" Luffy grinned, making the surrounding spectators wonder how he could always be so easygoing. He then turned to Law with a more serious look on his face, reaching his arm up to put on his shoulder. "I hope you've been taking good care of her."

The heart pirate gave a firm nod, earning another wide grin. This kid was all smiles.

"I have Sanji cooking up a huge meal! We're gonna have so much fun!" They heard a bit of clattering coming from the big ship as if emphasising his words, and they knew they weren't imagining Zoro asking where they hid the sake.

"Wooo! Par-tay!" Shachi cheered, being the first to climb aboard the Sunny and giving an enthusiastic high five to the cyborg. The rest of the crew followed, leaving the three alone.

"I suppose we should follow them," Law sighed, a bit annoyed at his crew. Some of them would be turning into handfuls when drunk, and he refused to fill his medical beds with idiots. Especially since he had a better use for the medical bay tonight.

He watched with a twinge of jealousy as the woman and her captain stood close together, walking and chatting. Shaking his head and scolding himself, he followed them on board. He was surprised to see there was already a feast spread out along the deck for everyone. The blond cook was putting a few final serving plates down, welcoming Nami with a tight hug before letting her go visit her mikan trees.

"Alright everyone, go ahead and dig in!" Sanji called, standing with his hands on his hips and looking proud of himself. He turned to the Heart captain. "Especially you, _Trafalgar_. There are a few dinner loaves over here calling your name."

Wrinkling his nose in disgust, he chose to ignore the cook's invitation to eat bread. Instead, he grabbed a nearby rice ball, hoping it wasn't filled with anything gross to spite him. He knew the cook would be silently trying to punish him all night. He found it ridiculous, though. How could he be so mad at him for taking one girl that he would never get his hands on? What made less sense was that he swooned over any and every other girl anyways. The saying 'plenty of fish in the sea' seemed to be his motto.

As he got to the filling, he was pleasantly surprised that they hadn't all been filled with umeboshi, his second least favourite food, and instead he had a bite of perfectly seasoned tuna and mayo. The cook did have something to be proud of, after all. "I forgot how good he is at cooking," he admitted quietly. His own chef was classically good, but there was always something more elevated about Sanji's meals.

"I missed his food too," Nami whispered, seating herself next to him. She picked up a nearby small sandwich that looked like it would go perfectly with tea.

He glared at the food's foundation. "You better not kiss me after eating that," he joked.

"Aw, but I was really considering it," she smiled back.

Law moved his free hand to her shoulder, pulling her closer to him. "I'll let the bread slide this time, then."

She stared at him in awe with her mouth almost open in surprise before clearing her throat and focusing back on eating. "I was kidding, Law."

"Me too."

They both somehow knew they weren't.

The moment was broken as an overextended arm forced its way in front of the two, grabbing a handful of rice balls, making the surgeon of death scowl lightly. He picked up a few more, trying to save them from the rubber arm, and stuffed them into his mouth. He really had to have faith that there were no pickled plums in those, as the rice balls seemed like the only safe thing to eat right now.

Nami giggled quietly, watching the unintended battle of the onigiri. The sound made the man's ears prick up, and he turned to look at her only to get a full out laugh in reply. "You have rice all over your face!" she pointed out, taking a napkin and brushing the rice grains off.

Freezing mid-wipe, she realised how intimate what she was doing was. Law only had a shocked look on his face, though a mild blush was starting to brush along his cheeks. He made no move to stop her, only looking straight into her deep brown eyes. Time seemed to stand still again, and the man silently groaned, wondering how two people could feel this isolated when surrounded by loud people.

As he watched those brown eyes dilate and her face turn red, something clicked inside his head, like the final edge piece of a puzzle. He was starting to understand her a bit more. She turned her face away and apologised quietly, handing the napkin over to him. She hoped no one else noticed what she'd done.

Unfortunately for her, the cook was almost visibly on fire with jealousy and stalked away into the kitchen. Robin just looked at them with a supportive smile and a wave, which reminded the Heart captain that he intended to talk to her.

Wiping the rest of the rice off his face, he excused himself to the silent rear of the ship and subtly called the historian to follow him.

xx

"What's this all about?!" Nami gasped as two hands suddenly sprouted in front of her eyes. The rest of her crew started protesting as well, with Brook making his usual skeleton joke of not having eyes.

"Attention Straw Hat Pirates, we have a surprise for you down on the Heart Pirate's submarine," Robin announced, letting the hands she had put over everyone's eyes raise a bit so they could at least see where they were going.

"If you're going to let us see, what's the point in having hands on us?" Usopp pointed out.

"I thought it was fun, but I suppose you're right," the historian sighed, disarming her power.

They walked swiftly on to the sub with Zoro complaining he hadn't got his fill of alcohol yet, and towards the medical room. There waiting for them was Law with gloves on and the ultrasound machine ready. Nami looked at her friends, confused, but only the historian had a knowing smile on her face. She gestured to the bed, and the redhead climbed in without a second thought.

"What's going on?" she asked, looking between her and the doctor.

"It's your fourteenth week of pregnancy. We might be able to determine the gender," Law revealed, trying to keep his excitement on the inside.

"Oooooh we should've tried guessing this whole time!" Luffy shouted. "I say it's a boy!"

"I think it might be a girl," Usopp and Sanji agreed.

"Boy," Zoro stated firmly.

"What if you're having twins!" Chopper exclaimed.

The heart captain shook his head. "There's only one heartbeat."

"It would be _SUUUPER _if it was a girl," Franky posed.

"I think it's a boy," Robin smiled gently.

"I want to say it's a girl… But only for the eventual panties~" Brook twirled enthusiastically, almost knocking down a few straw hats in the process. The others decided to just move past that comment.

"Well, I've been thinking it's a boy so far," Nami admitted. "I'd like either, though."

Law took out the ultrasound gel and put it on her stomach, making her wince with how cold it was. Everyone held their breaths as he turned on the machine and plugged in the censor, rubbing it along her lower stomach. Finally, he found the familiar black sack with the grey baby. It had definitely formed more than the last time they saw it on the screen.

He moved the device around a bit, angling it differently to try to find the sign of gender. He reached back and picked up an open book that had pictures and explanations of what he was seeing. Narrowing his eyes and looking closer at the screen when he found a good angle, he broke out in a wide smile. "It's a boy!"

The whole group cheered with excitement and tried to crowd around Nami and Law to see the ultrasound more clearly.

"It will be fun to tell him that all the Straw Hat Pirates were so desperate to see his penis," Robin joked, making them all jump back to where they were standing.

"Thank you," the navigator mouthed at her. She didn't particularly feel like being crowded. As she stared at the monitor, her eyes started to fill with tears. "He looks like a real baby, with the head and everything," she sniffled. Law took a few pictures with the device and set it aside, putting a warm cloth on her stomach to clean the gel.

He then took off his gloves and took her hand gently, staring at the captured image on the screen. It was a tender moment, and the Straw Hats felt both lucky and a little out of place.

"So, who's gonna raise him?" Chopper asked, being accidentally insensitive. The parents' smiles slowly faded, and the reindeer clasped his hands over his mouth, suddenly aware of what he'd actually said. "Oh, I'm so sorr-"

"I think we're going to discuss it eventually," Law cut him off, "but now isn't exactly the right time. Why don't we board your ship and go back to eating?"

Luffy cheered, unaware of the tense atmosphere, and was the first one out of the room. The others followed to leave the two alone.

Nami looked at the doctor and then at her lap, shaking her head with a sigh. "My crew likes to do whatever is opposite for the mood."

"I can tell," Law agreed, thinking on all the times they acted silly and happy when they were literally about to die or at least were in a very serious situation. "We don't have to discuss this now. We have another six months, give or take."

"Alright, let's just assume we'll wing it for now," she nodded, letting the man help her off the medical bed. "Also, I wanted to let you know I'll be staying on the Sunny tonight."

The man hesitated, not wanting to admit to himself that he would prefer her with him. "If anything happens or feels weird, tell Chopper to come get me straight away," he instructed, trying to play it off.

"I will."

Pushing down the questions that yet again plagued his mind, he offered his hand to help her off the chair so they could leave. It was now dark, and they continued boarding the Straw Hat's home not noticing that they were still holding hands until Penguin pointed it out upon their arrival. "Hey, captain! Did the baby finally bring you two together?"

Looking at their hands briefly before letting go and inching away from each other, they both felt their cheeks warming in the colder evening air. "It's a boy," Law announced, trying to change the focus.

"Congrats!" Shachi stumbled up to them, already half drunk, and draped his arms around their shoulders. "Mr. scary doctor here always wanted a son and then a daughter. Once his junior's born, will you try for a girl?" he asked Nami.

Her blush deepened and her mouth gaped open, unsure of what to say.

"That's enough, Shachi," Law replied, masking embarrassment with a harsh glare. "Also, I don't recall ever telling you that."

"You told Bepo ten years ago and we all just happened to overhear," he laughed, not sensing any danger from his captain. He let his arms fall off their shoulders and staggered away with a happy smile. "Cap's gonna be soooo happy."

"Ignore him," the captain almost begged her. "He's clearly… Intoxicated."

"Well, alcohol does bring things out sometimes," Nami replied quietly. They stopped and remembered that one night for a moment before shaking their heads and sitting with the others. The rest of the people didn't seem to take notice of the Heart Pirate's drunk rambling, now celebrating the announcement with a tremendous shared bottle of sake.

"Man, I wish I could drink with everyone," the woman sighed. "I feel up to trying to forget my worries and telling the truth."

"The truth about what?" Law asked, curious.

She turned her head to stare at him for a long time, watching the light from the nearby campfire making his eyes seemingly glow. "Now's not a good time to say."

"Alright, take your time," he tried to make her feel at ease, though he was also caught in her illuminated eyes. "The alliance with your crew has made me more patient than any man in the world."

"I doubt that," she giggled. "You still seem like when you want something, you want it _now_."

"You read into my true nature a bit too much," he gave a sly smile. "Some things on my end are best kept for now as well, so don't try working your people skills magic on me."

"Deal."

They spent the rest of the part next to each other, though Nami ended up mostly talking to her crew with Law watching quietly.

The way she looked lit up by the fire was alluring. The way she smiled and laughed while talking to her friends kept his eyes glued to her. With a small twinge in his heart, he tried to push all the jealous and possessive feelings away. He didn't want to feel like he had to have her. He didn't want to be tempted to snatch her away. She wasn't his prize. She wasn't his woman. She wasn't his. And that annoyed him.

She once made a good argument that she always would have a choice for everything. Whether she let him into his child's life or not was one that he worried about. He knew if she decided against it, he would never be able to get near him. It was an irrational fear, though. Nami was a kind person – she wouldn't break his heart like that.

He growled inwardly that she had such control over the most ironic thing to him. His heart. She had really grown on him, and though he refused to admit it out loud, he wouldn't mind switching his sights from the one piece to raising their child. Where would that leave his crew, though? He had a duty as a captain.

Nami would never ever leave the Straw Hats either.

He watched her interact with them, looking the happiest she'd been since he got her on his submarine. A part of him cursed her. Why had she started this months ago? What did she think she would gain from seducing him other than problems? If she hadn't ended up carrying his child, where was she planning to go with this?

A part of him hated her for bringing up so many issues and having the power to make or break him. An even more powerful part of him loved her. He hated it. He loved it. He loved her. He loved their son.

Watching her laugh with her crew members, he vowed to make it so that she could laugh like that with him, and to make her feel like he was her home. He had never wanted something like this so strongly in his life.

xxx

The party died down, as did the fire, and those who remained awake said their goodnights and went to their own quarters. Law reluctantly retreated as well, giving one last longing look at Nami as he bid her goodnight with a reiteration to get him if anything felt wrong.

As he left, he didn't feel the woman's torn gaze at watching him leave. It was harder than she thought to watch him go somewhere else, even though she was the one that chose to stay the night in her old room. She knew he wasn't so possessive as to forbid her from being with her friends.

"Alright, let's go to our room," Robin broke her train of thought. She followed her through the halls that she had felt so at home in. It'd been such a seemingly long time since she'd been down them. Almost three months was too long to go without the Sunny.

They arrived at their room, and Nami almost had forgotten that the bed they shared was a king opposed to the queen that she and Law shared. This one was big enough to feel like they weren't even on the same side of the room.

"Ready for some late-night chat?" Robin asked as they started changing into their night clothes.

"Ugh. I don't know if it's gonna be chatting or just complaining on my end," she rolled her eyes.

"Well, you know you can talk to me about whatever," the historian gave a kind smile and crawled into her side. The navigator almost missed Law as she crawled into the other side. Getting into bed shouldn't be such a rush of complicated emotions.

"I hate Law."

The raven sat up suddenly. "What?! Is he doing something bad to you? I'll break his neck…"

"No, no," Nami assured her. "I hate how he makes me feel."

"Oh?" the woman relaxed, laying back down and turning to face her.

"I don't ever know what's going on with us," she sighed, folding her arms over her eyes. "I got some information from a reliable source that he likes me, but it's hard for me to put all the complications aside and tell him that I know and I feel the same."

"Are you hoping he'll make the first move?"

"Kind of, but we have slept together in the same bed for almost two months now and not once has he even accidentally touched me. Our bed here is bigger than his and you and I woke up tangled together more often than not!"

"He's probably trying to show you that he can be a gentleman," Robin mused. "He brought you to his room because he's concerned about the baby as he is the father, but he probably thinks you'll kill him if he so much as touches you."

"Well, he's touched me before," Nami grumbled. "And I'm not gonna go up to him and be like 'oh, by the way, I want you to act like we aren't separated by a wooden board'. I _know _how he sleeps when he's comfortable. I don't like feeling like I'm the reason he's not at ease in his own room."

"You might be overthinking this. I bet he's just trying to get you to trust that he's not going to do anything."

"But…" she turned and buried her face in her pillow. "I _want_ him to do something. I don't like this feeling."

"Tell me what first comes to your mind when you imagine sleeping next to him."

"Cuddling."

Robin giggled. "Cute."

"Hey," Nami looked over and puffed out her cheeks. "I'm just being honest. I really want some contact. He has no problem touching my stomach on occasion, and sometimes he holds my hand, but I miss being hugged and casually touched, even. Our crew here is more handsy than I realised."

"Are your pregnancy hormones making you want to sleep with him yet?"

The woman groaned and buried her face in the pillow. "Since the morning sickness stopped. I can't stop thinking about the night that started everything, and I feel like it's all I think about now."

"I'm sure he's thinking the same, or at least every time he sees your belly."

"Great. I'm a scary tease, aren't I? My own cockblocker."

The room was instantly filled with Robin's uncontrollable laughter. "I… I think that's the funniest thing you've ever said seriously," she managed to say.

"Uggghhh."

"Nami, he's a doctor who happens to be the contributor to a pregnancy. I'm sure he would understand you craving contact, be it innocent… Or not…"

"It's embarrassing."

"It's a natural physical reaction."

"Robin…"

"Hm?"

"I think I might be in love with him."

"Oh. Not _purely_ physical, then."

Nami groaned for a different reason now. "He isn't really a 'feelings' guy. I don't think he understands that he at least likes me. If I throw love into the mix, he might freeze up! And even worse, it just makes this whole situation worse somehow."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't want to leave you guys, but now… I'm starting to think I don't want to leave him either. I'm having his baby, so separating would be hard. He couldn't leave his crew, even if he wanted to, and I can't give up being a navigator."

"Nami." Robin's voice was suddenly stern.

"Hm?"

"I love you. You know I do. But do you want my honest opinion?"

"Of course."

"Move to either an unknown island or one that would be very safe for you to live in."

"What, like Dressrosa?" the redhead joked. "And how could you suggest I do that? I love being here!"

"That's a good option. They would treat you three very nicely."

"Three?"

The historian sat up and looked down at the younger woman. "You and Law should move to Dressrosa and start your family there. You both will either have to break each other's hearts and have a child on board highly wanted pirate's ships, or put your dreams on hold for a few years of stability."

"I was hoping to have this conversation once the baby's born," Nami groaned. "He is not going to put everything on hold to have a small family, especially if he won't even admit he at least likes me."

"Honey, he loves you. I'm sure."

"Uh huh," the navigator rolled her eyes. "At least that's some sort of solution, though."

"He wants a son and then a daughter, right? Settling down might be what he wants."

"You heard?!" Nami laughed. "Shachi is really funny."

"I hear everything," Robin smirked. "Now, tell me what you want Law to do to you."

"What?! Since when did you become so perverted?"

"I ran out of romance novels."

"No."

"Okay."

They were comfortably silent for a few minutes before she let out a heavy sigh. "I miss him."

"Why did you come here tonight then?"

"I wanted to remind myself that you guys are my real home."

Robin felt sad for her conflicted friend. "You're pretty strong, you know."

"I got knocked up by a rival pirate that I've fallen in love with and now I'm crying about what life to choose. How is that strong?"

"You haven't thrown yourself overboard."

"Gee. Thanks."

"I'm serious. If I were you, I probably wouldn't have told anyone, I'd pointedly distance myself from the father and I might even run away and have the child in secret. You're a very strong woman to face all the issues headfirst," she complimented. "Remember that even if all the others are against whatever you choose, I'll always support you."

"Thank you, Robin. That means a lot," Nami sniffled, willing potential tears away. "I wish I was better at fixing the problems I cause."

"Well, think of it this way. You don't cause problems, you cause opportunities. You end up pregnant because you couldn't keep your hands off a dangerous pirate, you take the opportunity to tame him to be the best, strongest father in the universe. Natural selection wouldn't dare even look your way."

They both broke out in laughter, making the redhead cheer up. "You're a bit extreme, but that perspective does help."

"Tomorrow is day one for making a dependable mate," Robin winked, though it could barely be seen in the dark.

"Can't wait."

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Happy new year everyone! I decided to post this as my last present of 2019.**

**Thank you everyone for your reviews! There are a few things I would like to address from them: **

**1\. I update at least once a month, usually on the 8th since it is my favourite number.**

**2\. I understand Law's a bit out of character, but personally it's hard to write cold characters and it's what I needed during the time I wrote it. I love that you guys are enjoying my story, but I've always had my writing as my therapy. Plus, this is set quite a few years in the future so I figure the Straw Hats rubbed off on him enough to give some of that humanity back.**

**3\. I've been working on this for almost a year, so please don't be concerned if the writing style changes as I keep growing as a writer. My new year's resolution is actually to increase the time I spend writing and editing, so hopefully I'll end up consistent pretty soon here. The last few chapters were also mostly just edited instead of re-written like the first ones since life happens and this month has ****_happened_****. (Everything's fine now)**

**Let's have a great 2020 everyone! A new decade gives more of a feeling that we can just wash away the troubles of the last one. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's efforts :)**

**Now adding a few extra words because if I don't, the word count is apparently a lot of 6s and those are some bad vibes. **


	7. The calm before the storm

The next morning came, and Nami winced as sunlight hit her closed eyelids. She was used to waking up to the soft glow of a desk lamp, as the Heart captain was usually reading something and watching over her. "Law?"

"Nami, we're on the Sunny," the other woman's voice reminded her. The navigator looked around with sleepy confusion, making Robin smile. "I forgot that you're quite cute after a rough night of deep sleeping."

Nami habitually rubbed her baby bump as a silent 'good morning' before sitting up. "What time is it?" she asked when she noticed the historian dressed normally. She was standing in the doorway, which must've been what woke her up.

"Around noon. Sanji's making lunch and is pretty upset that you weren't awake for a special breakfast that he made," she answered. "You better get dressed. Law gave me some clothes for you," she put them on the bed.

"Thank you."

After getting dressed, she followed the other woman to the kitchen where her crew and Law were waiting. The doctor instantly got up and stepped towards her, looking a bit worried. "Anything happen? Are you two all right?"

"We're fine," she replied, rubbing her bump.

"Good," he let out a sigh of relief. Clearly he'd been concerned that she slept for so long.

They sat down for lunch, the cook bringing out beef stew and setting the big pot in the middle of the table. "Alright, help yourselves," he said proudly.

Nami was thankful that it wasn't something like seafood; Law would not permit it, and despite the cook's great talent, a seafood medley wasn't exactly the best breakfast while she was sensitive to food.

She habitually seated herself next to him. They were somehow more drawn to each other, and were almost touching as they ate. Sanji puffed his cheeks out in annoyance, but kept quiet. Luffy decided to start talking about the next island they were going to visit – it was supposedly a rainforest on a tiny bit of land. He wanted to check out some rare beetles that were supposed to live only there, and Nami was almost thankful she didn't have to go with them. A rainforest didn't seem like her cup of tea right now… Or ever again.

A part of her yearned for the exploration part of it, though. Spending months underwater in a submarine wasn't exactly stimulating, and all she could do was read or talk to Bepo about different navigation methods. The Heart Pirates also did their best to entertain her, but they all had jobs to do aboard the ship.

"Nami, you look like you're about to squish him," Usopp pointed towards Law, who she had put all her weight on during her thoughts.

"Oh!" she sat upright with a blush. "I'm sorry!"

"It's fine. Lean on me whenever you need," the man mumbled quietly enough for only her to hear.

She felt her face grow even more hot, and a bit of confusion also washed over her. Since when was he so nice in front of other people? "I… I'm going to take a really quick bath before we head out," she stood quickly and briskly walked away.

"Do you want me to wash your back?" Robin called after her.

"Yes please."

The historian got up and followed her friend with a small wave of goodbye to the men gathered around the table.

"I wanna wash Nami-swan's back!" Sanji raced after them before suddenly dropping. All the others saw was a hand retreating from his shoulder, though Chopper deduced that Robin had probably pinched one of his nerves.

Law could almost feel the frown on his face deepening into a scowl. He _really _didn't like how much the cook went after her. She was pregnant with _his_ child, and he dared to flirt and chase her in front of him? He was just asking to be sliced up.

"I'll be in my ship. Let Nami know to come after she's done," he stood and stalked out onto the deck. Holding out his hand, he activated his power and teleported himself onto the Polar Tang. He shoved his hands in his pants' pockets and walked down the hall towards his office, hunched over slightly. The first crew member he ran into was Bepo, who noticed his captain was not in a very good mood.

"Is something wrong, captain?" he inquired, concerned.

Law mentally kicked himself. He was a feared leader known to almost the whole world, and here he was sulking over emotional issues. In his mind, a leader never showed that kind of weakness. But this was one of his closest friends, so he let his problem spill out. "I hate that black foot."

"The cook? Why?" the mink cocked his head to the side.

"He won't stop flirting and fussing over Nami when he knows she's _mine,_" he growled.

"Mmm… I think she made it pretty clear that she doesn't automatically belong to you," Bepo pointed out.

"Even if she doesn't, it's _my _child. He can at least show a little restraint."

"What if he's doing it on behalf of his crew?"

Law paused and crossed his arms, leaning a bit on the wall. "What do you mean?"

"No one else seems to be upset at all, or at least enough to do anything. He could feel like spiting you is his duty. You _did _take one of their members."

"I suppose."

"He also is probably jealous that she liked you enough in the first place to do something that she wouldn't do with him," he blushed, embarrassed to have to mention it. "No matter how much he tries to annoy you, even when he succeeds, it won't change the fact that she chose you in some way over him, so there isn't much need to be jealous."

"I'm not jealous," the captain denied, looking at the floor.

"Even if he's not doing it just to mess with you a bit, do you really not trust Nami? She's turned him down for many years. And even if she doesn't belong to you, she's a good enough person to feel some sort of loyalty to you, at least while she's carrying your son."

Law sighed, lifting his head to look at his own navigator. "You're right. Sometimes I forget how smart you really are."

"Hey!" Bepo shouted before hanging his head. "Sorry…"

The man raised his hand to pet the mink's head. "I don't know where I'd be without you guys." Standing tall again, he switched back to being his captain. "When Nami comes back, we're setting sail right away. Tell everyone to say their goodbyes if they want. I'll be in my room."

"Aye aye," Bepo saluted before walking off towards the lounge where the rest of the crew was most likely gathered.

Heading towards the room, he tried not to think too hard about the Straw Hat's cook. _'If he _did _try anything, I'm sure she would charge the hell out of him,' _he assured himself. _'Either way, I have to start trying to win her over, even if it might be pointless.'_

xxx

It wasn't long before the woman appeared on the ship. She entered through the door, being greeted by Jean Bart. "Welcome back. Are you ready to go?" he gestured inside.

"Yes, thank you," she smiled politely, walking inside. The man shut the door behind them and walked with her down the hall.

"I forgot to congratulate you last night," he started. "It's pretty exciting to find out the gender. Were you hoping for a boy?"

"Actually, I was," she replied, touching her stomach. "I would've liked it either way, but I could just feel it somehow."

"Mother's intuition," Jean Bart shrugged, opening another door for her to the main area that split into different rooms.

Most of the crew was running around to get the submarine moving. Watching them for a minute, she couldn't find who she was looking for. "Would you happen to know where Law is?"

"I've been on the deck for the most part, but I think Bepo was the last one to talk to him," the large man revealed.

"I think I know where to find them, then. Thank you!" With a light wave, she beelined to the navigation room, which was almost her second home on this ship by now. As she expected, the mink was hovering over a map, silently tracing a path with his paw and settling on a point. He looked up and waved when he saw the fellow navigator.

"Hey Nami. You wanna help me plot the course to this next island?"

"Oooh, where are we going?" she walked towards the map, intrigued.

"There's an island over here that we'll be dropping off most of our crew at. They'll be collecting some information and hopefully raiding some small crime rings. We're trying to locate a certain man…" Bepo cut himself off. "I shouldn't tell you about him, though."

"Why not?"

Nami could feel someone come into the room and turned to see the man she was initially looking for. He wore a frown, directed towards Bepo. "It's not a pleasant topic in your current state."

"That just makes me more curious," she huffed, crossing her arms.

Law walked up to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Please drop this one. It could put you in an unnecessary panic."

"Is this coming from the doctor or the father?"

"Both. I wish that _I_ didn't even find out about this guy. We're going after him to try to capture and turn him in to a friend of ours as a favour. Even killing him is an option if necessary."

"Hm. Fine, but after he's captured you have to tell me," she demanded.

He agreed with a sigh, making her smile triumphantly. "It's not something you will be happy about, I promise," he warned.

Bepo looked between the two nervously. He knew the truth about who they were going after and why, but he was determined to not let it slip. It was rare for them to go after such despicable people, but they'd been asked a favour from an old friend. Unfortunately, it now hit close to home on Law's part.

He refocused on navigating the easiest route they could take, determining that they would arrive in the next week and a half, give or take.

"So, how many are going after this guy?" Nami asked.

"I'm sending everyone except Bepo, myself, Ikkaku, Jean Bart and Shachi. This mission's been appointed to Penguin because for some reason, he wants to make himself more known."

"It's odd that you're splitting up the dynamic duo," she mused.

"Shachi gave out unnecessary information about me last night," Law mumbled, a bit embarrassed. "It's his punishment."

"It's a good thing you enjoy his silliness, or else Cap would send him on the front lines with an arm chopped off," the mink whispered loudly to them, making the woman's eyes grow wide.

"You wouldn't!"

"I wouldn't," Law shot a glare at his subordinate. "Bepo, don't joke like that until Nami is able to tell when you're kidding."

"Sorry…"

The redhead shook her head. "I should've known it was a joke. I'm sorry for being gullible."

The captain rolled his eyes, a bit annoyed at the navigators' apologising. "You two…"

Nami wandered to the room's window, sitting on the couch that came out of the wall. She propped her head on her elbow. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I really want to go on a mission."

"No."

"But I'm restless!" she whined.

"You're extra vulnerable right now. I won't allow it."

"Not even a burglary?" she brought out her puppy eyes, trying not to let them gloss over at the thought of money.

The man sat down next to her. "Tell you what. Next time we come across an unoccupied mansion on a small island in the middle of nowhere, I will personally go with you to rob it."

The woman's eyes glowed brighter. "Okay, but I'm going to charge you for every mansion we miss."

The polar bear mink watched them, feeling a bit bad for his captain having to deal with a restless pregnant woman. He did enjoy that he was smiling, even if slightly exasperated. It had seemed like not too long ago he hadn't been smiling for quite a while.

Law stood and turned to leave the room, silently beckoning for the woman to follow him. She heaved herself off of the couch and left with him to let the mink work in peace.

"You ready to get going?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered, looking down with a light sigh. She didn't know when the next time she saw her crew would be. Her head lifted when she remembered the encouragement Robin kept giving her. She didn't want to drop all of her suggestions, since she worked hard at helping her out. With a few deep breaths, she worked up the courage to walk closer to the Heart pirate and brush her hand along his, avoiding eye contact.

He glanced down at her for a slight moment before taking the invitation to hold her hand.

It was a new feeling that made goosebumps rise along both their bodies. The only times they had held hands before was concerning tender moments involving the baby.

This time was just about them. Nami felt her cheeks growing unusually warm, making her lean her head down and hope that her hair would obstruct his view of her blushing. She'd never felt this shaky and unconfident around anyone else in her life, except when she was in absolute danger.

What was it about Law that made her so weak?

"Nami."

She almost jumped when he said her name. "Y… Yes?"

"We're here," he softly gestured with his free hand. In front of them was the door to the control room. She was suddenly aware of the loud voices that chatted behind the door. Her grip tightened subconsciously, not wanting to let go.

He seemed to understand her struggle, battling with himself over whether to open the door and ruin the moment or not. He almost hated himself when he moved to let go and grasp the handle and step through the door. "We're leaving. Start the engines."

"Woo! Let's get in gear!" Penguin hopped right to the controls, clearly excited to lead his first mission. "This bastard's going _down_!"

"I personally would like to procrastinate this one as much as I can," Ikkaku scowled. "I don't even want to be on the same _ocean _as him."

"Cheer up, Ikki," Clione put his hand on her shoulder. "I'll be the one making sure he doesn't get off the island and onto our ship."

"We're all going to die, then," she rolled her eyes with a dramatic sigh.

"We just have to hide in the ocean. Devil fruit users, even ghost types, can't go underwater," Shachi leaned back in the chair he was sitting him and stretched, pausing abruptly when sensing the sudden tension in the room.

Law looked at his crew menacingly. "Did you all forget what I said?" They looked between him and Nami, simultaneously swallowing with fear.

"Sorry," Penguin apologised. "I didn't mean to start it."

"I don't care as much about that," he waved it off before turning his attention to someone else. "Shachi, keep a closer watch on your mouth or I will put you on solo cleaning duty for a _year_," he commanded, glaring intensely at the loudmouth.

The man stood up quickly and saluted. "I'm sorry, Captain! Won't blab about the target again!"

"Make sure of it."

The crew went back to work, making sure the system was good to go before letting Jean Bart take over. He and Bepo were currently the dream team for getting them where they needed to be. Law scoffed at his crew and left the room with Nami following after a quick wave to the other pirates.

He stormed down the hallway, grumbling about one of the oldest crewmates. Once he noticed the woman trying to catch up to him, he slowed his pace. She was soon next to him and he took her hand softly again. It somehow soothed his annoyance, and they walked at a comfortable pace to the next place he needed to be: their room.

He'd been letting her borrow some of his books and she made a habit of getting absorbed for hours. They had gotten a comfortable reclining chair for her to read in, and sometimes when he left her there, he would come back at the end of the day and she wouldn't have moved.

She went straight to the stack of medical books, having been interested in learning more than standard first-aid. Choosing one about essential organs and wounds, she got comfortable in the chair and opened it. Law admired that she had an interest in these things. It was a plus that she wasn't super squeamish, as it sure would be an issue when he used his power.

He grabbed a few things and left to oversee his crew, getting tied up with various captain duties for a few hours. When he got back, she was sleeping in the chair with the book resting in her lap. He picked her up and moved her to the bed. As he went to leave, he sharply inhaled when her hand suddenly grabbed his wrist. "Don't go," she mumbled.

It was quickly determined that she was still asleep. He reluctantly denied her request and stood after removing her hand and fixing the blankets over her. There were a few more things he had to sort out, having initially come only to let her know dinner was ready. She would be awake again soon enough so he wasn't too worried.

As he left, he couldn't help but wonder how long the peace would last. She'd been put in his care to keep her safe, but leaving her with her crew might've been better than putting her through what would come next.

XXxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxXX

"Hitode, what in the world are you making?" Shachi asked their cook, unsure how to feel about the various smells coming out of the kitchen.

"Steak with red chillies and chocolate syrup," the cook replied with a slight cringe at the admittance. "Nami requested a lot of sudden things, and this was the only almost palatable thing I could put together without making her sick."

"Her cravings have been crazy since we left her crew. I've barely been able to keep up," he nodded in understanding.

It had been a week since they said goodbye to the Straw Hats, and everyone was on edge from the sudden pregnancy symptoms the redhead was displaying. Especially intense mood swings. They all shared a theory that the emotional distress from separating from her crew and the tension from the upcoming secretive mission made her control over her initial symptoms slip.

No one else had suffered anything more than minor scares or inconveniences from mood swings, but the smells wafting from the kitchen had been hard to ignore on an air-tight ship.

"Chocolate syrup and steak should be a crime," Shachi groaned, pinching his nose when he got a hint of whatever other atrocities were in the sauce.

"I've either become immune to this or my nose no longer works," Hitode sighed, reluctantly plating the food and adding a handful of raw vegetables per his captain's request.

With perfect timing, Nami walked through the door and took a deep breath. "Wow, it smells delicious! You might've outdone yourself!"

"I might've committed a crime against all food," he lowly mumbled before placing the food on the table. "Would you like a drink?"

"Orange juice, please," she smiled sweetly, batting her eyes.

"Sure thing."

Penguin suddenly burst through the door, looking around wildly. "What the heck is that weird smell?"

"Steak with chocolate and chilli peppers," the navigator replied, taking a bite with a happy hum. "It's more delicious than I thought!"

The three men looked at her like she was an alien. "Pregnancy cravings are the most unnatural natural thing in the world," Shachi whispered to the newcomer.

"Agreed."

"You know I can hear you, right?" she glared, swallowing pointedly. "I'll eat you too if I have to."

They looked panicked and took a deep step back, huddling together. "You're not serious, right?"

"Who knows?" she broke into a scary smile, staring them down as she continued to eat.

"Aaaanywayys," Penguin turned back to his crewmates. "Hitode, we're coming up on that island soon. I'll need you to make enough energy packs for everyone going on the mission in two days."

Nami shuddered, familiar with the horror of energy packs. Thankfully, Sanji rarely allowed them to be eaten, but the dried rations were occasionally required on any island that had questionable ingredients or vendors without an option of going back to the Sunny. They were also used when they were completely out of any other food on board, which thankfully rarely happened. Dehydrated, bland and disturbingly-textured energy packs were an insult to cuisine.

"Is the island unsafe enough for those gross packs?" she questioned, expressing her disgust.

"I can't say too much, but there's a chance we could be poisoned or worse if we ended up having to buy something there," he explained.

"Hmm… Maybe it really _is _a good thing I'm not allowed to go."

"Trust us. It is."

The men all left before she was finished to do a last-minute briefing of their target. She resisted the urge to eavesdrop, knowing full well her emotions were not under enough control to guarantee listening quietly. Instead, she finished her meal quietly, debating on whether today would be the day she would finally drink the pickle juice that was still sitting in the fridge.

Her mind gave her a hard 'no' along with a pang of nausea at the thought. Not quite yet.

With a heavy sigh, she resisted the sudden urge to _throw_ the porcelain plate into the sink, placing it lightly instead. She'd been very bored and a bit stressed in the past week. The lack of being under the sun and regular entertainment had been making her stir-crazy. It didn't help at all that everyone was tip-toeing around her and the only ones who wouldn't were consistently busy. She was aware of the intense fluctuations in her moods from the hormones, and while she felt a bit lonely and awkward at the treatment, she couldn't blame them.

One person she did wish would keep his distance was Law. Fortunately, he was the busiest of them all, but the smaller amounts of time she _did _see him were starting to stir up trouble. Along with the fluctuating moods, her hormones were causing… _Other _problems. The fact that she'd admitted her possible feelings for him to Robin just seemed to kick those particularly physical urges on overdrive. It was like her brain finally stopped thinking about the situation and how she felt about it. The mental struggle was finally over – now it was time for a different one.

Shaking her head so she wouldn't dwell further, she left to wander the halls aimlessly. The meetings were usually held in the navigation room, so she stayed clear of that. The only places left she ever went in were the engine room, the medical bay and the two rooms she'd stayed in. She'd had enough of the medical bay by now, and the only thing to do in her room was read, try different outfit combinations, or sleep.

Engine room it was.

After a light knock, she poked her head in to find Ikkaku and Jean-Bart watching the systems. They were two of the four staying behind apart from herself. "Hey, got room for one more?" she asked.

"We've got, like, five other chairs in here," Ikkaku gestured with a tired grin. "Take your pick."

She seated herself next to them and stared in silence at the screens. The mechanics had been explained to her before, mostly when she was studying underwater navigation with Bepo. Oddly enough, the consistent beeps of the radar were almost hypnotic, soothing her enough to make her drowsy in minutes.

The other pirates seemed to notice and tried to spark up a conversation. "So, the guys are all in another dumb meeting, huh?" the brunette rolled her eyes. "There have been so many for this one mission that it's ridiculous."

"I think it's because Penguin's leading it," the tall man replied. "It's such an important and dangerous task. I'm sure Captain just wants everything to go smoothly since he's not going to be there."

"Well, _someone _reliable has to protect miss princess here," Ikkaku joked.

"What? Calling yourself unreliable?" the navigator questioned.

"I've been relying on endless cups of coffee to keep me awake today. I barely even know if this is a hallucination or not," she gestured to the entire room. "I might protect you, or I might be passed out in a hall somewhere. I'd place all my bets on mister overprotective having your back."

"He fights better than any of us anyways," the helmsman added. "There's a reason his bounty is so high."

"Men and their stupid bounties," Nami rolled her eyes. "It's like the ultimate dick-measuring contest."

"Hey, you've got a pretty hefty bounty yourself," the brunette reminded.

"Not nearly as much as the other monsters who are near and dear to me. Besides, I don't exactly like having pictures of me plastered everywhere – it makes it a bit harder to steal from dumb rich people."

"I thought you were the miraculous cat thief, swiper extraordinaire!"

"I said harder. Not impossible."

Ikkaku sipped loudly from an oversized mug filled with coffee, filling the silence. "Need more," she mumbled, excusing herself and leaving the two alone.

They barely had anything to say, sitting comfortably and watching the radar. The device made her feel a bit lonely if she stared too long at the blank screen. On one hand, it was great that there were no signs of any sea kings or other dangerous large fish. The lonely part was that it was tuned as to not bother picking up traces of small harmless fish, making the ocean around them feel empty.

"Are your engineers going on this mission too, then?" she asked, suddenly remembering the short list of people staying on board versus the amount of bodies she usually saw in this room.

"Yes. They will be taking a smaller boat and happen to be good at being backup during fights. None of them have special powers so they will be in charge of watching the sea stone devices."

"I see."

Jean-Bart looked down hesitantly, choosing his next words carefully. He knew Law would get very upset if he told her any details she didn't already know. "I know Captain didn't want to tell you much, but I understand how you might not take his worries seriously since he's being overall protective of you. Please understand that he's not being dramatic. This guy is one of the worst I've ever heard of, and we're all worried for each other's safety as well."

"If that's the case, why is Penguin leading the group instead of Law?"

"Like we discussed earlier, the captain is the strongest and has to make sure nothing happens to you."

Her brows furrowed as she became more confused. "Why would he need to worry about me here rather than his crew out there? Aren't you guys more important?"

The large man looked around nervously, unsure how to answer that without letting her know what danger could be waiting. "I... Uh…"

"Nami!" Ikkaku burst through the door, saving her crewmate. "Would you like some coffee too? I just put a fresh pot on."

"No thanks, I don't think I'm supposed to have much caffeine," she answered, shaking her head.

"I can put the kettle on for some tea, then?"

"That sounds good, actually. Thanks."

The woman nodded, glancing over at the helmsman. "Jean-Bart. Coffee? Tea?"

"I'll have some coffee."

"Perfect. Nami, want to come with me? I don't know what you take in your tea."

Sensing the tension she caused within the tall man, she agreed. She wasn't too sure if she wanted to hear any of the possible answers to her question.

Ikkaku seemed to have noticed her almost solemn mood change and linked their arms together. "So, the _next_ next island will be my home island! I'm pretty excited."

"What? Really?" her mouth almost dropped open in shock. "You're from this far out into the grand line?"

"Yup. I'm not gonna tell you much more until we get there, but it will be a _good _surprise this time. You will get to learn all about the fantastic me and where I grew up," she flipped her hair back dramatically, earning a small giggle.

"Well, I look forward to it then."

"For now, would you like to talk about you? We haven't done as much girl-talk as I would like. The captain's been trying to keep me and the knuckleheads busy, so we don't tell you about all the uncool things he's done."

"Like what?"

Her grin was almost evil as she went over the scenarios in her mind. "I'll tell you some if you tell me a bit about yourself."

They finally reached the kitchen again, and the redhead was ushered to the table. The Heart pirate put on the kettle and poured herself a cup of freshly brewed coffee before joining.

"What would you like to know?" Nami asked, unsure of what to bring up.

"Mmm, maybe… How did you earn your cat thief nickname?"

"Well…"

The next while was filled with deep personal explanations that she normally wouldn't bring up with people, but it wasn't as if it was some huge secret. She felt they were close enough by now anyways, and it was nice to have another girl to talk to about it. More questions followed: how did she end up with Arlong? How did she escape him? And on a lighter note, how did she survive so far with the Straw Hats going on all the adventures they did? She had Luffy to thank for everything since the fishman. The good, the bad, and the deadly.

Talking about her crew made her realise just how much she missed adventuring, despite it being dangerous most of the time. Above navigation, she had a thirst for exploration. Living in a submarine was not the life for her. When her son was eventually born, living underwater was one of the options she was going to cross off her list. Law was probably not going to like it.

Ikkaku saw the expressions change on the navigator's face the more she talked about her crew and their adventures. It was time to change the subject again. "Alright, I've got enough info for today. As promised, I'll tell you about the time Captain cried because he saw a massive stuffed polar bear at an amusement park and thought someone caught, killed, and stuffed Bepo."

"No way," her hand flew to her mouth to prevent a burst of laughter. "There's no possible way that man can cry."

"There is a way. And he did. In front of me, Clione and Uni. Oh, and about a hundred people around us in a crowd."

"I can't even imagine that."

"Neither could that poor crowd. Everyone other than us three in that crowd got their lives threatened."

"Is that the mysterious rocky port incident?"

"No, that was when-"

"She doesn't need to know about Rocky Port," the man of topic walked through the doorway with a glare. "And she _definitely _didn't need to know about Cedar Park."

"Sorry boss, I just thought she should be cheered up a bit. You guys have been acting so grim and the others have been tiptoeing around her so much that she needs some laughter," the brunette explained.

"Not at _my _expense," he sighed, sitting down with them. He directed his gaze at Nami, studying her for a moment. "I suppose things _have _been a bit heavy the past few days. I'll make it up to you soon somehow. As for the rest of my crew, I'll tell them to stop being weird."

"I'm sure it's because my random moods are making them uncomfortable," she defended them, not wanting any more tension. "I'm just a guest anyways. I don't want them to suddenly treat me like some sort of queen."

"Girl you _are _a queen," Ikkaku snapped her fingers.

"Thanks," she smiled, suppressing another laugh.

The brunette suddenly jumped up. "Your tea! And Jean-Bart's coffee!"

"I can make my tea if you want to go make the delivery."

Law and Nami watched her speed out the door, trying not to spill a bigger cup of piping hot black coffee as well as her own. Once she was out, the navigator focused on making her drink. She was painfully aware that it was just the two of them there. It was the first time in a few days that they caught a moment alone without it being the middle of the night. "So, where is everyone else?"

"Most of them are back to work, some are starting to gather supplies, and some are training."

She stopped and turned around to look at him quizzingly. "Training in the guys quarters?"

"There's a training room on the bottom level," he revealed. "I haven't shown you because I didn't want any idiots accidentally harming you."

"Believe it or not, I've got pretty good reflexes," she retorted, a little offended he seemed to think she was so easy to hurt.

"Reflexes are nothing if you can't see what's going on. A lot of the time there are training drills where the room is filled with a sort of fog."

"How do they not die themselves?"

"I'm a miracle doctor."

"Fair enough." She finished stirring the milk and sugar into her black tea, enticed by the comfortingly sweet smell. Quickly dropping it off at the table, she started to rummage through the cupboards, looking for something. "Aha!" She emerged victorious with an unopened box of triple chocolate cookies that they smartly bought on the last island.

Settling back down at the table, she tore open the packaging and started to eat almost as diligently as her captain. It was as if she almost forgot about the other person in the room. Unfortunately for her, she didn't. It was his fault she was trying to kill two hormonal urges with one pack of cookies.

"Is there something you want from me?" she inquired after washing half the pack down with the hot tea.

"Except for the rustling of the package, this is the most quiet I've gotten all day," he rested his head on his elbows. "It's almost therapeutic."

"How sad. I've been surrounded by mostly quiet, so my own therapy was talking with the people you haven't completely kept busy who aren't a bit afraid of me," she was almost accusing him, her eyes narrowing into a glare. "I never thought I would be the one to say this, but I'm bored of reading. If you're going to keep the fun members of your crew away, can't you at least give me something else to do?"

"What, like chores?"

"Maybe? I don't know. Just anything!"

"I'll see what I can do entertainment-wise once this mission is over. For now, please just continue on."

She scoffed. "_Please_? The great captain, mister feared surgeon of death, is asking me nicely to do something?"

"I'm far too tired for this," he mumbled, crossing his arms on the table and resting his head. "I've been surrounded by noisy idiots all day explaining the same plan over and over, and somehow, they still don't have it completely memorised."

"Is it a long plan?"

"Very."

"Maybe you should just trust your crew to do their thing. Luffy never follows your plans and everything turns out okay," she forced a smile, knowing full-well how _not_ okay the disturbances usually ended up until the very end.

Her words just made him sink more into the table.

"Or, maybe you should take a nap," she suggested.

"You should too. There are light bags under your eyes," he commented, pointing lazily at her face.

Her cheeks puffed up with annoyance. "Yah, well you almost have raccoon eyes by now!"

Somehow, they both ended up moving from the kitchen to their room. She was nowhere near as tired as he was as her bags were most likely from oversleeping. Still, she accompanied him, planning on picking up a chart from the room to work on.

Once they got there, he took off his cloak and put it on a hook along with his hat. He sat on the bed with a deep sigh, letting himself fall backwards and closing his eyes. "Wake me up when dinner's ready. If anyone asks for me, tell them to… You know what, I can tell them personally."

"O… Kay…" she replied as she gathered some papers and a compass. The rest of the supplies were already in the navigation room, as well as Bepo, whose maps she could replicate and improve. When she turned around, she rolled her eyes upon seeing the man sprawled out at a weird angle on top of the blankets. '_What is he, a kid?'_ "I'll leave you to it, then."

She then left, turning off the light behind her. _'I guess even _he _can act like a child sometimes._'

As she entered the navigation room, Bepo, Penguin, and Uni turned to her, startled. It was as if they were just talking about her. She squinted suspiciously, walking calmly to the desk and placing her items on it. "Did I interrupt something?"

"N-nothing special," Penguin stuttered before slinking to the doorway. "I-I have to… Do something…"

Once he left, she looked at the other two in confusion. "What's up with him?"

Bepo shuffled nervously, glancing between his crewmate and the woman. "It's not my place to say. Sorry…"

The masked man stepped forward. "When we get to the island, please make sure to not leave our captain's side. It won't be safe alone," he warned before leaving as well.

The tense atmosphere left Bepo and Nami awkwardly avoiding each other's gaze. The bear clearly knew something but couldn't elaborate, but they both knew her patience was stretching thinner and she might eventually snap before everything was resolved and revealed. But he, for one, didn't want to be caught in that, but he also didn't want to actively avoid her since she'd seemed a little lonely. He didn't want to stoop to everyone else's tense levels.

"Can you teach me how to draw good terrain indicators on charts?" he asked, knowing what she _really _needed was some distraction.

"I'd be happy to," she agreed, pulling out a fresh sheet of paper and sitting at the table with him.

Hours passed as they worked on different techniques, the hardest one being how to draw mountain ranges without making them look like a toddler's attempt at the alphabet. Eventually, one of the crew members let them know it was time for dinner.

She left Bepo on the way, having told Law she'd grab him for dinner. The first thing she noticed about the room is he was in the exact same position as when she'd left hours before: face down and sprawled like a starfish. Walking up to him hesitantly, she realised she'd only woken him up once before for a semi-emergency. How would she do it since she wasn't overcome by fear?

"Law?"

No response.

She reached out her arm slowly to push his shoulder, only to yelp in surprise as his hand flew up and caught her wrist. Before she knew it, she was being pinned down to the bed with her arm twisted behind her back and his other hand holding her head down into the mattress. It was painful to the point of her eyes watering, but the bed restricted her voice and she only managed to make a few muffled yells.

After what seemed like an eternity, his grasp in her wrist eased and he scrambled away from her, turning on the light. "Nami?!"

She looked over at him, eyes still filled with tears as she corrected her arm and stood. "Who else?!" she hissed. "_You _told me to wake you! How could you just attack like that?"

His face twisted into a mix of confusion and regret. "I'm sorr-"

"Just go to dinner," she sat down on the bed with a huff. "I'm sure you wouldn't want to sit at the same table as a potential enemy."

She knew she was being overdramatic and saying things that basically made no sense, but she couldn't think of anything else to say. She was hurt, both physically and emotionally. Hadn't he gotten used to her presence? Yes, a stressful mission was coming up and he was tired, but they slept in the same bed every night! Was this a display that if they stayed together, he might one day accidentally fully attack her or, god forbid, their child?

Her thoughts started to whirl out of control and her tears now burned with frustration and anger. He was still in the room for some reason, and she looked over again with a pointed glare. "_Get. Out._"

Following her instructions, he gave a quiet apology and all but ran out the door, leaving her to lay down and cry a bit more. Normally, she wouldn't have reacted _that _badly, having been mistakenly attacked by her own crew before. It was just the fact that this was _Law_, the one person who she was repeatedly being told would protect her.

She realised she'd been ignoring the fact that he was a _dangerous _man. If she wasn't on the right crew at the right time, he might've tried to kill her if she crossed his path as her cat-thief self, or at the very least, disassemble her.

Now, she wasn't sure how she would see him if he came back. Would this feeling pass and let her forgive his reflex? Or would the small amount of fear grow to the point of her not being able to trust him again?

Before she realised it, she'd cried herself to sleep, dreading what awaited her when she woke up.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

As the Heart captain sullenly walked down the hall to the dining room, his heart ached with the guilt of what he'd done to the woman carrying his child. Actually, he didn't even care about the child part.

He'd hurt Nami.

He felt like a piece of garbage. The worst of the worst. How had his subconscious failed him, allowing him to do something that made her cry like this? It was a feeling of deep regret and shame that he never wanted to experience again.

A part of him scoffed at how soft he'd become when it came to her. He had never been a sympathetic touchy-feely guy. Never been one to value emotions or care about what people thought about him. How they _felt_. He was blunt, sometimes rude and decidedly selfish for the most part. He knew this, and the back of his mind yelled that he hadn't changed much since he was a part of Doflamingo's crew.

Up until he had made an alliance with the Straw Hats, he had sated his human need for intimacy on random gullible women that he knew for _sure _he wouldn't come across again. He never fell for a pretty face – not even Boa Hancock made him bat an eye for her favour. It was purely need and pent up frustration that he took out on the lucky women.

Not _one _of them made him question himself.

He inwardly sighed, thinking back to how this situation first started.

It would take a complete idiot to not notice that Nami of the Straw Hat pirates was a stunning woman. It would take someone who hadn't ever met them so say that that's all there was to her. Those who knew her would agree that she was a mesmerising package of beauty and serious brains. Except, apparently, when it came to him.

He had clearly noticed both these features upon forming the alliance with Luffy's crew. In the moment, though, he couldn't care less as there were more pressing matters, such as taking down Doflamingo and Kaido. It wasn't a whole lot of time after all the drama ended that he had begun to fit in more with the crew, letting him notice more about each individual.

He was already mildly intrigued by her patience with her captain and her navigation skills, but he barely thought her as anything else.

Until that one night. He broke his personal rule about not sleeping with someone he would see again, and it led them straight to this.

He snapped out of his thoughts once he noticed he was standing in the middle of the dining room with his crew all staring at him.

"Where's Nami?" asked a concerned Ikkaku. She could tell by the look on his face that something happened.

"She's… Not hungry," he lied. She probably was, but the thought of having to look at him was what kept her away. It felt like a stone dropped in his stomach as the guilt started to really eat at him, taking away his appetite.

After an hour or so of watching his crew's antics, he decided it was time to go back and see if she had calmed down enough for him to apologize. Bepo blocked his path, having run from the navigation room. "Sorry Captain," he apologised. "I need to make an urgent announcement."

"Listen up everyone!" Law caught their attention for him.

The mink cleared his throat before looking over the crowd of his crewmates. "It seems we're about to cross a current. It's going to get really bumpy," he warned. "Brace yourselves."

The captain sighed. His plans of patching things up would have to be put on hold for now. "Let's fasten things down. I'll take the medical bay, the rest of you split up as you see fit. We don't want any incidents this close to a mission."

"Aye aye," they saluted.

He ran down the hall towards his main workspace, knowing full well there would be a lot of trouble if he didn't fasten down certain things quick enough. By the panic in Bepo's voice, he knew it wouldn't be long until the current would start shaking the submarine like a dog with a toy.

The medical bay got locked down just in time. He finished sealing the last needle-filled drawer before the submarine jerked, almost knocking him off his feet. He rushed back to the bedroom to make sure Nami was okay, ignoring the fact that she was upset with him. He was shocked to find that she was sound asleep, laying on her back with her arms crossed over her eyes. He figured that sailing on the oceans surface made her immune to the jolts of storms and rough waters.

He sat on the bed, watching for a moment before glancing down at her exposed stomach. He found himself running his fingers lightly along it before covering it with his hand, yearning to feel the heartbeat through the growing bump. He hadn't been so fascinated with a living creature before, and it was weird to feel so obsessed and in love with something he couldn't even touch yet.

Nami's breathing changed, making him jerk his hand away. Her eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the dim light of the room. They made her way to him, glossing over with anger. Her lips formed into a frown. "Get out."

His heart dropped. "I'm sorry."

"I don't even wanna look at you right now," she moved her gaze pointedly to her maps. "You _hurt _me, intentional or not. You're gonna have to do something better than an apology."

This was worse than getting punched like he'd expected her to do. He got up and moved to leave the room, almost getting knocked over again by another shift in the waves.

"Oh, we took the route with the fluctuating currents," he heard her mumble to herself. He looked back before he left to see her starting to stand, turning on her lamp and looking at her maps with purpose.

He closed the door behind him, feeling like a dejected idiot – he should've known that just an apology and a nap wouldn't fix what he did.

Despite the tremors, he somehow made it to where he knew his crew was sitting tight back at the dining room. As someone with little experience in these situations, he had to consult the council and ask for their help. "Bepo, Ikkaku, come with me," he gestured.

He led them to a meeting room and locked the door. Moving to a nearby chair, he sat down and hunched over with his head in his hands. "This conversation does not leave this room, got it?"

They took their seats and agreed, wondering what this could possibly be about.

Taking a deep breath, he revealed his problem in three words. "Nami hates me."

"What did you do?" the mink asked.

"I…," Law looked at the floor. "Let's just say my reflexes are my enemy sometimes."

"Captain," Ikkaku groaned, shaking her head. "No matter if it was minor or major, you're gonna have to do some sort of gesture. She probably wouldn't get over it with just an apology in her state."

"I know. She won't forgive me yet, and I doubt she'll trust me again for a while," Law put his head in his hands again. "That's a major problem if I want to keep monitoring her this closely."

"Get her some pretty flowers!" Bepo suggested.

"We're underwater, oh great navigator," the brunette reminded him.

"Sorry…"

The captain smiled lightly. "That's the main reason I asked you here. I need to fix this somehow."

"Cook her favourite meal," the woman suggested.

"I think her favourite food is fruit. You should make one of those pretty fruit arrangements!" Bepo added.

Law rubbed his chin in thought. "Not bad, not bad."

"Bring her tea and cookies every day. Eventually she'll be expecting you to come to her with treats and get excited to see you," Ikkaku grinned.

"It might take a month before I'm let back into my own room, though."

"Why not give her your heart?"

A voice from behind the door interrupted. Bepo unlocked and opened it, revealing Shachi and Penguin, who were clearly listening. It was the redhead that had spoken.

"What are you doing?" the captain glared.

"You really thought you could have a meeting without your best friends?" Penguin smirked, throwing a peace sign.

They made their way in, shutting the door. "Listen, Law," Shachi stood in front of him, being abnormally serious. "We both know you're stupid when it comes to women and feelings. You're gonna have to tell us exactly what happened."

Law somehow managed to explain the brief transgression, his head hanging down the whole time. He was so ashamed of himself, and repeating the incident just solidified it more.

"I'll say it again. Give her your heart. Literally," Shachi ordered.

Law put his hand over where his heart was, taken aback. "No way! She might be mad and crazy enough to kill me!"

The four crew members looked at each other with disbelief. The woman was silently voted to set her captain straight.

"Over the past few days her emotional state has been withering away because you want to keep a secret, which no doubt is affecting her reaction to the incident. She _trusted _you. She's carrying _your _baby. You _hurt _her when she was vulnerable. Nami's not the type to kill, but you honestly deserve whatever pain she could inflict on your heart."

Her fellow pirates nodded vigorously, making the surgeon of death sigh with defeat.

"You're right. I'll do it when we get out of the current."

"You better move, then," Penguin gestured to the door. "We got out a few minutes ago."

"Oh."

"Go, captain," they all nearly shoved him out of the room and down the hall. With a heavy heart, almost literally, he stumbled towards the room. It was rare that he experienced true fear, but this was one of those times.

It wasn't as if he thought she would _actually_ kill him. No, she was too kind for that. She might not even harm his heart at all. He feared seeing her face twist into anger and hatred again if he went near her. It sent chills down his spine. When had he started to care about this sort of thing?

Somehow, he made it to the bedroom, pausing before opening the door and peeking in. Nami was sitting at the desk, writing down some formulas or underwater navigation. Or at least, she was trying. Her arm seemed to stop every few seconds, and she was wincing every time she had to move it. She felt his presence as soon as the door opened, stiffening and looking at her work pointedly. "What part of 'get out' don't you understand?" she hissed, reminding him of a menacing tiger.

"I'll make this quick, then," he said, holding out his hand. "Room."

She turned to him, her eyes widening in fear. He looked at her calmly, though on the inside he was shaken. Was she afraid of him now?

He moved his hand in front of his chest. "Mes." A square hole became visible as he took his heart out of his chest. He dropped the blue aura, holding out the beating heart. He moved to the desk, almost towering over her as she stayed sitting, and put the organ in front of her. "I'm so sorry that I hurt you." He kneeled down, getting to her eye level. There was now a mix of hurt and confusion in her brown eyes. "I normally don't attack when I'm being woken up, but all that's been in my mind is this guy that we're hunting down. I must've thought you were him trying to attack me."

"I understand, but I'm a bit shaken up," Nami replied with a quivering voice. "And… My arm might be sprained. I'm worried that something worse might happen, or you might react badly if one day our son snuck up on you or something."

"I know, and I'm sorry." Law lowered himself further, almost bowing. "I know I have no right to ask, but please forgive me. If you must take your anger out first, take it out on my heart."

She looked at the beating organ in front of her. She poked it, seeing the man in front of her squirm uncomfortably. "I can't hurt you," she finally said after a few moments. She picked up the organ. "I can't forgive or trust you for now either, but I suppose I can let you back in if it matters enough that you'd give me this. I never thought I'd see the day the mighty Trafalgar Law would be on his knees asking for my forgiveness. This might be the weirdest day of my life."

He looked up at her and she held his organ out for him to take back. He shook his head. "You keep it for now anyways. If I do something that hurts you again, squeeze it."

She put it back on the desk with a nod, though keeping it off her map this time. "You're just asking for a beating, then. You caused this pregnancy, and your heart is going to be the thing I hold when I give birth," she joked, lightening the mood a bit.

He cringed, knowing that it was only really half a joke. She was still not impressed with him, as she kept her eyes glued to the map again. He accepted that this was as far as he would get for now. At least he was allowed back in the room.

"Would you like some tea and cookies?" he tried Ikkaku's suggestion.

"That actually sounds good right now. I liked that lemongrass tea you made a few days ago," she replied.

"I'll make some."

He left the room, letting out a huge sigh of relief. His knees buckled and he fell to the floor suddenly, grasping at the hole in his chest. She was almost as sadistic as he was, he decided. Making everything seem alright again, but hurting him when his back was turned.

"Sorry," he heard her call. "Couldn't resist."

The weight suddenly lightened, and he could stand again as if he hadn't felt anything in the first place. Hanging his head, he continued to the kitchen to make tea. As he was waiting for it to steep, he felt a light flutter along his heart. It wasn't painful this time. It was as if she was softly caressing it. The tingling stopped as he felt his pulse quicken – she probably hadn't known that he could feel the nice things, too.

Grabbing another box of the cookies she'd been eating earlier, he put it on a tray along with the pot of tea and one cup. _'She's putting on a fierce front,' _he knew. He would play along, as long as it eventually led to forgiveness.

He frowned, remembering that before the incident, it felt like they had gotten close. It was like they had taken a step forward, and by doing what he did, he dragged them three steps back.

He didn't have the amount of time he'd had before to earn her trust back. He was just going to have to do his best to prove he'd never hurt her again, and he needed to establish that before they reached the island. Trust would be _very _important if they wanted to survive any mishaps.

If she couldn't accept leaving herself in his care…

His eyes narrowed as he stared ahead. _'Penguin better not fail.'_

* * *

**Hello! I am on time for once it seems!**

**Small explanation for this chapter: If everyone seems a little ****_too _****upset at what Law did in here, it's because it was originally so awful I would've needed to put a trigger warning, so I re-wrote it but it didn't tie in right, so I re-re-wrote it and had everyone treat it worse than it was. I couldn't bring myself to post the original since it was teetering on the line between OOC and canon behaviour but it would've been really dark and this story is dark and stressful enough for my mental state :) **

**Also if you notice some varying spelling things, I'm Canadian so we have a lot of different spellings of words and between this site and my own Word program, spellchecks are mean. **

**I am also working on some stories for Valentines Day! One will be for this ship and the other will be for a new favourite of mine from a different show. They will both be one-shots.**

**Have a good February everyone! **


	8. Destiny?

"Captain," Bepo opened the bedroom door the next morning, honestly mildly surprised that he was in the bed and not sprawled out on the floor in pain.

The man groggily sat up, careful not to wake the woman next to him. "What is it?"

"We'll be arriving at Sansetta soon," the mink informed.

"How soon?"

"Two hours."

"Okay, I'll be out shortly then," Law dismissed him. Once the door was closed, he turned on his end table lamp, looking over at the still-sleeping Nami. Somehow, she let him sleep with her in the bed. His heart was still out of his body, now beating on her end table, but somehow it seemed to make the situation better. She knew she had a bit of leverage on him, and that made her feel somewhat at ease again, knowing he wouldn't dare do anything without there being _intense _consequences.

He wondered if touching her face would make her mad. The temptation rose when he saw a small bunch of her hair fall along her cheek, stopped by her nose. He just couldn't resist reaching over and tucking it behind her ear, cupping her face when the task was done. "Nami," he whispered, brushing his thumb across her cheek. "It's time to wake up."

Her eyes opened softly and she supressed a gasp, her first sight of the day being the handsome man staring down at her, and if she didn't know better, she would describe it as a loving gaze. She noticed his hand on her cheek instantly, but chose to let it slide. She felt she had punished him enough with the punch to the heart yesterday.

Honestly, she had almost completely forgiven him, but she wanted to see how far he would go to earn her full forgiveness and trust.

She wasn't being stubborn and hard-headed either – they were pirates. She knew that some were used to being in charge and getting what they wanted. Unfortunately for Law, she was not going to let him off so easily to teach him a lesson.

She looked at his arm and then back at him, silently asking for him to move it so she could get up. Thankfully, he managed to get her telepathic message, letting her slowly sit up and stretch. "It's been a while since I was out on the deck."

"You're not going today, either," Law replied sternly. "There's a very dangerous person there and I don't need you putting yourself even closer to harm's way."

"Ugh, won't you tell me already what the big secret about this guy is? I mean, we're pretty much there already," Nami yawned. She felt it was too early to get in an argument, but she was persistent.

The man sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I said I'll tell you once he's captured."

"I can't stand being the only one who doesn't know," she groaned. She would've growled if she'd been more awake.

"It's to protect you! The stress of knowing would be worse than not."

"If you're next to me, what do I have to be worried about?" she softly glared at him, hands on her hips. She barely registered her words before a blush crept along her cheeks, negating her glare. "I mean, we could hide on the island somewhere?"

He shook his head. "We have to stay underwater for extra security." Giving her an intense look, he decided to let her know one thing. "You're his exact type of target. We shouldn't even be here with you, but I owe someone very powerful a favour."

She was quiet, looking down at her hands. "I see."

Law hesitantly placed his hand over hers. "I will be next to you every second until they come back, just in case. I have a room on the lower level made of sea stone that we'll be storing him in, and we will be dropping him off at an island only a day away."

Nami nodded, deciding to finally let this one go. She wasn't quite sure why she would be a target, but if that was the main reason the man was worried, she was willing to let the details go for now. She got up and stretched again before walking over to her dresser and picking out some clothes to change into in the bathroom.

It wasn't long until she emerged wearing a plain yellow crop top and a long blue skirt that started above her naval. It was a thin enough skirt to see the bump, and he frowned inwardly a bit. He was happy to see his unborn child, but the situation made it dangerous.

He swore to himself he would not leave her side, especially if the dangerous target somehow made his way into the ship.

XxxxxxxxX

Breakfast was tense. The men going on the island's surface did their best to talk about their plan without revealing what made the man forbidden to talk about. They were planning on using only sea stone weapons, previously provided by the mysterious person who requested his capture.

Nami studied the faces of all the heart pirates, growing nervous. She was starting to understand the seriousness of the situation, and why she had been kept away. Stress and anxiety were never good for the body and mind, especially not when the body was carrying a baby.

She had been used to a lot of stressful situations, especially since she started travelling with her beloved Straw Hats as Luffy was the definition of a trouble magnet. She hadn't realised that even though some of her personal situations were stressful, she rarely felt this kind of pure anxiety of potentially facing an enemy. She hadn't even _remembered_ how that felt somehow, even after experiencing it for years before.

Watching the pirates, she cradled her stomach protectively. She sincerely hoped that they would be able to catch the guy with no issues.

Penguin caught her eye and gave her a smile and a thumbs up, silently assuring her that as the mission leader, he would do his best to take care of it.

"Oooooh, Pengu's trying to flirt with captain's girl," Shachi called, lightening the mood.

"Am not!" the man blushed, turning to argue with his friend.

"Looked like flirting to me," Ikkaku joined in with a smirk.

"If you try anything, Captain will take you apart," Bepo added, a little more serious than the others.

Jean Bart slammed his drink on the table. "He wouldn't just take you apart. He would disembowel you and leave you alive, scattering all your parts on separate corners of the world to let you feel pain in every environment."

The table got quiet and tense again at the morbid description, before Nami burst out laughing. "He wouldn't do anything to you. Don't worry. Mostly because I am _not _'his girl'."

Penguin looked away bashfully, scratching his head. "If I was actually flirting, he would…"

"Hey." Law decided to clear this up once and for all. "I don't care about flirting. You're all hopeless compared to me. It's not like I can lose," he smirked, looking around at the crew that was now playfully giving him dirty looks.

The pregnant woman continued to giggle, feeling at ease again. "You guys are so funny."

The captain looked over at her with a smile and a wink, making the others sigh in defeat. "Yup, no one can beat him."

XxxxxX

It was time for them to surface. The crew was running around, most of them getting ready for the mission. Sea stone weapons, handcuffs and nets were passed around. Luckily, no one other than the captain was a devil fruit eater.

"Why hasn't the navy taken care of this guy?" Nami asked, turning to the captain.

"Sansetta is a poor country, and a lot of pirates come from here. The thing this guy is doing helps the navy more than anything, so they choose to ignore him," Law replied with a scowl. "It's despicable."

She chose to stay quiet, just staring at his upset face. It was rare that he got so aggravated over other people, but marines were such a sore spot. Besides, there was nothing she could say to that, having been through it herself.

Penguin ran up to them, stopping with a salute. "We're ready to go, Captain!"

"Alright. Take the spare boats," the man ordered. "I expect you back within the day."

"Understood!" He turned and left with the crowd, heading to the exit, waiting for the last few meters of water to go beneath the deck level. Once they were all clear, they opened the door and headed straight for a secret compartment where they had three small rowboats stored.

It wasn't long before the managed to get two ready and on the sea. Nami could see the island in the distance – it seemed like they were ten kilometres away from the shore. _'Talk about staying on the safe side,'_ she thought.

She watched them start to row, making good time. She turned back, trying to keep from being jealous; she missed the land, but Law had already made it perfectly clear she wasn't even really allowed outside on the deck.

"So, what should we do in the meantime?" she ended up asking him.

He looked down at her. "If you're alright with it, I was hoping you and Bepo could exchange map information. Particularly for our next island."

Nami's eyes sparkled. "You don't mind me charting down your explorations?"

"Not at all. It would be beneficial for us to be as informed as we can be as well. Of course, our map won't be nearly as detailed as yours," he complimented, making her excitement rise.

"Where's Bepo? We gotta start right away!" She nearly ran into their room to gather her maps, running past Law in the doorway again to go straight to the navigation room.

"Bepo!" she called, slamming the door open so hard it seemed to nearly fall off its steel hinges.

The mink jumped and turned in a fighting stance, relaxing when he saw it was just the redhead. "You startled me! Is something wrong?"

She ran forward and slammed her hands on the desk. "Let's exchange our detailed map information!"

"Uh…" the mink was unsure of how to respond. "I'm not against it, but are we allowed?"

"I already gave her the go ahead," Law spoke from the doorway, having finally caught up to the energetic woman.

Bepo turned to his fellow navigator. "Let's get started, then!" He pulled out an extra chair to the desk and they immediately went to work. The captain took a seat next to the window, looking out to the island. It was basically a speck from this distance.

He'd given Jean Bart instructions to submerge them again ten minutes after the men left for the mission, and that time was almost up. He wanted to enjoy the sight of blue skies as much as he could. It seemed the woman was starting to rub off on him – he never felt claustrophobic and restricted except when they first got the sub, but he was at least starting to feel a longing for the wind on his face. Perhaps he'd been spending too much time on the surface on partner missions with the Straw Hats.

It wasn't long before the horizon started to rise with the water level. It drifted over the window, lapping at the panes before fully covering it. The light blue of the top of the water soon turned deeper as they dropped further into the ocean.

Looking over, he saw that Nami was too focused on the maps to notice their descent. He found himself watching her again, trying to memorize the sparkle in her eyes, the curve of her smile and how her cheeks were dusted with a light rose with excitement.

He found himself smiling along with her. Her moods were very contagious, be it positive or not. He wondered how he got to this point – letting his emotions get dragged around with someone. It really wasn't like him to let himself fall continuously for someone, but she seemed to be his only exception.

He listened to the navigators' excited chatter, comparing islands and adventures. Not surprisingly, Luffy rarely seemed to listen to her exploration advice, as was clear for the Punk Hazard incident, causing them to be put in a lot of danger. It was a miracle they were all still there. That kid was reckless, but it seemed to make them all stronger both mentally and physically.

It took almost three hours before even the most basic pinpointing and labelling was completed. Ikkaku soon entered the room to offer them tea and coffee, as well as to chat with Law about the plan once the man was captured. Jean Bart had apparently been asking about the course they would take to the drop-off point, making Bepo leave the desk and join the discussion as it was his planned route.

A few minutes passed of them planning, and Law noticed the redhead's arms crossing and her lips turning into a pout, annoyed that she had been almost instantly shoved aside.

Leaving the conversation up to Bepo, he walked over to her with a light grin. "Are you hungry?"

"Yes," she replied curtly, looking away.

"What would you like to eat?"

"…Onigiri."

The man nodded. "Surprisingly normal. I like the sound of that." Seeing his crew members still talking, he gestured to Nami for them to leave the room. "Let's go make some ourselves. Hitode went on the mission."

"Okay," she agreed with a light smile replacing the pout. As they walked down the hall, she decided to fill the silence. "I can't believe you went to so many places that we didn't even know about."

"There are a lot of places that are easier to find from underwater," he explained. "Some countries and communities prefer pirates to not invade their shores every two days."

"Must be a shock to them when you guys show up," Nami giggled, thinking about it.

"Yah, there aren't a whole lot of pirates with submarines out there. We were nice enough to not wreck anything, though," he smirked almost wickedly, sending questions that she was too scared to ask through her mind. She didn't even want to think about what trouble he could possibly stir up, although the words 'black market' kept ringing through her head.

She shook the concern away, refocusing on her current task. Once they reached the kitchen, Law set to work on cooking the rice while she gathered some ingredients for fillings. They ended up making some tea and trying to relax in silence while waiting for the rice to cook. It was hard to erase the tension with the mission in progress, but they thankfully didn't have to dwell on it for too long.

The woman watched him press ingredients into the steamed rice before forming the rice balls like a pro. _'This _is _his favourite food… It makes sense to know how to make them perfectly,'_ she thought, admiring his skill.

He handed the first formed one to her. She hadn't seen what filling it was, but she bit down anyways, scrunching her nose when she came across something crunchy and sour that she didn't remember cutting. "Did you put pickles in this?"

"I figured a pregnant woman's cravings always fit pickles in," he replied with a smug smirk.

She glared at him but continued eating. "You're not wrong…"

They stood in the kitchen, eating the food right when they made it. Her mood was lifted, and she nearly forgot about their current problems, instead focusing on their personal ones. "So how many more checkups do I need to go through?" she wondered. "Like, mandatory ones."

"I would like to do them at least once a month for now with the exception of stressful circumstances, which I will always want to check over for," he replied with his cheek full of rice. "I'll be checking every few weeks in the last two months of your pregnancy. Hopefully by then, we will have figured out some safer island path to prevent any issues."

"A safe path in the grand line?" she scoffed and rolled her eyes. "I doubt there's such a thing."

"Would you prefer to be underwater for two or more months straight?"

"No!" she almost jumped from her chair feeling claustrophobic at just the thought. "No. I'll work with Bepo to figure it out."

"Good. I'll also be asking our current employer if she knows anything."

Nami cocked her head to the side. "She?"

"Yes."

She could feel her emotions stirring. Her logical mind took a backseat to the sudden flare of jealousy. "So you're going through all this trouble for a woman. She must be pretty special."

"In a way," he shrugged, too occupied with his favourite food to notice her implications.

"Is she paying a lot?"

"Not as much as it's worth," he sighed. "His bounty is really high, but I was asked as a personal favour to do this with less of a reward."

"Personal favour, huh?" She could feel her face twisting into a deep scowl. Who was this person and why was she getting such special treatment? The most Law had done for _her _was let her on his ship at his ally's request and watch over her as a doctor. He treated her a little better when he'd found out the baby was his, but she knew he probably wouldn't put more effort into their relationship than he already had.

"I don't know why people keep asking me personal favours," he admitted. "Unfortunately, I couldn't decline this one."

"And why not?!" Nami slammed her hands on the table and stood, making him look up and realise how distraught she looked. "If this guy is so dangerous, why are you risking the lives of most of your crew to fulfill some request from some woman?!"

"Because I owe her, and Ikkaku would castrate me if I declined," he answered, thinking over the consequences if he told her the full truth. "If you must know, our client is a princess and I owe her this for something involving Ikkaku. I don't have any right to talk about it, but you can ask her directly if you want."

"Fine," she sat back down and felt her boiling blood cool off. She gave him one more suspicious glance. "You didn't sleep with her, did you?"

"Which one?"

"Either!"

He chuckled a bit at her jealousy. "No. I _may _have done some standard exams on both, being a famous doctor and all, but that's it."

"Hm." She crossed her arms and let the jealousy melt away. "Surprisingly honourable."

"Not at all," the mood changed again as he leaned in with a smirk. "You see, I have this rule for myself, and it's worked out great so far. The only person I've broken that rule for is you." He stood straight again, now with a frown. "I don't sleep with people I'll see again. I make girls swoon, break their hearts and leave them behind. What's so honourable about that?"

"Well, at least it's better than seducing people for money or persuasion," she argued, trying to keep a blush from rising on her cheeks from his proximity. "We're pirates, Law. We do bad things. There's a reason we have bounties. You seem to at least have some sort of code that keeps you from going crazy, and I think it's a good thing you can restrict yourself to see women once and then leave them with good thoughts – with the exception of me."

"You _are _quite the temptress to somehow make me break the code, though," he replied, pulling back with a light smirk.

"Maybe a part of you _wanted _this situation." She placed a hand on her stomach. "Something could've been calling us together. I may be a tease but I'm no hoe. I don't sleep with people unless necessary or if I really like them, and most of the time it ends badly. Unlike you, lucky bastard."

"Do you believe in destiny then, Nami?" he slanted his head to the side a bit, giving her a teasing grin.

"Not really. I believe more in science."

"What's science telling you?"

"Something was able to break your strong will and was able to make me act recklessly. I believe our physical and emotional attributes make us a compatible and formidable duo," she explained crossing her arms. "Our genes want us to make very strong children."

The man chuckled, shaking his head. "Science sure likes to take the fun and mystery out of things."

"Hey, you're a doctor," she puffed up her cheeks. "You should know this part of science anyways."

"I also know every single chemical that makes up the experience of falling in love, but it doesn't make it any less wild for me to experience with you." His eyes widened as he realised what he'd just admitted, shocked at himself for coming to that conclusion, and even more so at his willingness to reveal it. Despite being naturally gifted with quick thinking, he was frozen. There was no way to brush off what he said.

Nami's jaw nearly dropped. The notorious Trafalgar D. Water Law, the surgeon of death, just let it slip that he was in love with her. She was at a loss for what to say – of course, she loved him, but was it the right time to tell him? "I…"

"Captain!" Shachi burst into the room, continuing to be the master of bad timing. Or, from Law's perspective, better timing than ever before. "We have a problem!"

Law took a swig of tea and cleared his throat, switching to leader mode. "What's wrong?"

"We just got a call through the transponder snail…"

"And?"

The man looked terrified as he met the captain's eyes. "They've been beaten pretty badly. Penguin is the only conscious one left. He said the target sunk one of their boats and stole the other one… He's on his way here!"

Nami gasped, shrinking into her seat. "You said before that he can't get to us underwater, right?"

"I did, but Penguin told me he has some ability that can bypass that… I don't know exactly what that is because the snail got cut off." As Shachi said that, they felt the ship jerk suddenly and looked towards the windows. The deep blue water was turning lighter again.

The captain stood and took her hand. "Stay close to me. We're going to the control room."

"Wait!" Shachi called after them, but he was too late. Law had activated his room and teleported with Nami, not wanting to waste time.

Once they got there, he stepped protectively in front of the woman. "Jean Bart! I did _not _give an order to resurface!" he shouted.

"Cap… Tain…" the large man shakily turned his head around to them. They gasped in horror – his eyes were completely white and his face seemed to be rippling. "Help…"

They could see him trying to win over what was mysteriously possessing him, but the being seemed more powerful, having caught the crew member off guard. His left arm was trying to peel the right one off the lever that controlled their escalation.

"This kind of looks like Doflamingo's parasite strings," Law hissed, activating his _room_ once again. He sliced the man's right arm off temporarily, but it was no use. The sub had already reached the surface.

"Someone's out there!" Nami pointed to the window. Someone was on one of their boats, and he was getting closer. Chills ran down her spine as the figure became clearer. It was a man with long hair that looked like blood with menacing clear white eyes and a wicked smile.

Law grabbed her wrist, startling her enough to make her yelp. He apologised, not taking an eye off the figure.

And then he was gone.

"Room!" he prepared his bubble, waiting for something to happen. "Be on alert, Nami."

Jean Bart was now slumped against the back of the chair, seemingly knocked out from the inner struggle. The captain felt helpless, wanting to help him right away, but there were more pressing issues at the moment.

This creature rarely wasted the energy killing _men_.

"Bepo!" they heard a shriek from the hallway, recognising Ikkaku's voice.

"I can't control myself! I'm sorry!" the mink yelled before they heard a loud _thud_ and a cry. Law dragged her to the hall to see what was going on.

Their eyes widened in horror as they saw Ikkaku lying unconscious on the floor, blood seeping from her lips. The polar bear mink was crouched over her, crying. He looked up as his captain approached. "I swear I didn't want to!" he sobbed, silently begging for his friend's belief. He seemed in control of his actions currently, but they knew he would never intentionally hurt a crewmate.

"Take her to the medical room," Law instructed. "We have an intruder. Be on mental alert and guard her."

Bepo nodded firmly, picking the wounded woman up and running to the medical bay.

"Guys! Stop me!" Shachi's voice came from behind them. They turned to see him running at them with his katana ready to strike. His eyes had also been turned white, and he was struggling to stop himself.

Once he entered the activated blue aura, the captain sliced off his arms and teleported them into an undisclosed room. "It seems the intruder can take over a part of people's bodies one at a time," he observed with a scowl. "Sorry, you're going to have no arms until this is over."

"Fine by me," the man crumbled to the ground, shaken by what he was almost forced to do. "I could hear him in my head… He's on the ship, and he's after Nami."

"By name, gender or situation?"

"All of the above," a firm, cold growl sounded from further down the hall. The man they'd seen on their rowboat turned a corner and walked to them with the creepy grin still plastered on his face. "I was hoping to leave more injuries while I could take over your unguarded minds. Too bad," he shrugged nonchalantly.

"What do you want with me," the woman spat, hiding slightly behind her protector.

"Nami, Nami, the beautiful golden egg of the Straw Hats," he looked her up and down licking his lips. His gaze rested on her stomach. "I see the rumours are true about you. Goodie for me."

"What rumours?"

The man cackled. "A pregnancy among one of the most powerful pirate groups is hard to keep secret, especially when caused by another highly known name."

"Wait… Who else knows?" Law questioned, dread pooling in his stomach.

"Probably everyone by now. Like I said… Rumours…" the man continued walking slowly towards them, stopping just outside of the blue aura. His gaze turned deadly. "You know why I'm here."

The captain growled, preparing a fighting stance. "You don't stand a chance with me here."

"Good thing I can make you disappear," he almost sang, raising his hand in their direction. "Cold claw!"

A dark shadow seeped out, quickly moving through the sphere and hitting Law straight in the chest before he could properly react. The man fell to his knee, hissing in pain before making himself stand again. He unsheathed his sword, holding it out. He narrowed his eyes, trying to make a plan on the spot. He'd been foolish to think that his men would successfully capture this monster without any issues.

He laced his blade with haki and grew his aura to surround the half of the sub they were in, preparing to strike. He launched himself forward, aiming for the head. This man was wanted alive, but he was sure under the circumstances the princess would forgive him.

A look of horror grew on his face as the man simply grinned and seemed to disappear, reappearing behind him and running at Nami.

"No you don't!" he shouted, pointing his fingers. "Shambles!" he swapped places with the woman, preparing to strike again. "Hiretsuna, your sick crimes end here!"

He disappeared again, though a bit slower as he was caught off guard. Law was able to track him, noticing that he was diving into the shadows. He reappeared again in front of the woman, not expecting her to take out a baton and whip it towards him.

"I'm not completely helpless, you know!" she yelled. "Thunder egg!" Smoke and eggs came out of the end, and the evil entity was caught unexpected as they hatched and hit him with lighting.

He jumped back with a light limp and a serious frown. "I underestimated you," he admitted. "Not anymore, though. Shadow strike!" He raised his hand and quickly slammed it towards the ground, a shadow being launched from the gesture.

"Shambles!" Law switched places with her again. The shadows launched out of the ground and formed solid spikes, but he easily deflected them with his sword.

"Clearly there is no way around you," Hiretsuna growled. "I suppose I should end this quickly."

He moved out of the aura before the surgeon of death could do anything and continuously launched shadows from his hands. Law blocked each of them with declining ease, shocked when some of the layer of haki started to chip away on the sword where he was deflecting the strikes. "What _are_ you exactly?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I'm a shadow person. I ate a strange devil fruit, and now I can possess weak-minded people, walk through walls and control shadows," he bragged. "I make money by using this ability to steal children and sell them. If they're too young or fussy, I use them as food for sea kings."

"That's horrible," Nami whispered.

He turned to look at her, an evil grin reappearing on his face. "I won't sell your child, my dear. I will just kill it right here, right now."

She dropped to the ground, her hand over her mouth and one wrapped around her stomach protectively. After a moment to process, she looked up defiantly at him. "Just you try. You will _never _be able to harm him."

"Hn. We'll see," he jeered. His face twisted into pain as he looked down to see the haki blade through his side.

"Scalpel."

He watched in shock as his heart was removed from his chest, falling into his opponent's hand.

"Better pay attention to your _real _opponent," Law smirked, giving the heart a squeeze. The man fell on the ground gasping and clutching at the hole.

"You're a sick bastard," Nami spat, standing up. She was even braver now with the heart in Law's hands. She balled her fists, looking down when there was a weird sensation. Her hand was covered in black, and she gasped. _'Haki?'_ Unsure, she marched forward and punched him over the head, almost sending him flying into the wall. Her assault was _definitely _more powerful than her past ones.

"Grab the sea stone cuffs," Law called to her, unaware of the new power she'd gained. He just assumed all her punches were that strong; they always seemed to send Luffy flying, after all.

She nodded, heading into the nearby room where she knew they would be. She grabbed them off the wall, freezing when she heard a loud yell. She ran back to see Law on the floor, gritting his teeth in pain. It seemed Hiretsuna had a small weapon on him as a dagger was sticking out of the captain's stomach.

Her haki gathered in her foot and she kicked the enemy, sending him flying. She stepped on his heart, which was now just sitting next to Law, making him squirm and yell in pain again. "How _dare _you?" she hissed, picking up the heart and squeezing it _hard. _"You come here by yourself to attack a pregnant woman, a sweet mink navigator, two ship hands and the one man that can protect them? You pathetic creepy coward! What is wrong with you?!"

She loomed over him, dropping the cuffs on his squirming body, making him instantly go weak. She then leaned down and snapped his arms in them before standing again, holding the organ over him. "You are _never _going to see this again. If you ever feel the pain, think of me and my prospering child. If you somehow continue to live when he grows up, I'll pass this along to him and tell him of the time a _nobody _tried to crush the Heart pirates and one of the Straw Hat originals."

Walking away with attitude, she tossed the heart down the hall where she saw Shachi still slumping. He was looking at her, horrified but impressed. Sure, she only got confident once his heart was out, but she definitely won the battle.

She ran to Law, who was still collapsed on the ground with the dagger sticking out. "This might be a stupid question, but are you okay?!"

"It's nowhere critical," he whispered before coughing painfully. "Hurts like a bitch, though. Is he cuffed?"

"Yes…"

"Give Shachi his arms back and call for Bepo."

She did as told, and soon the three were towering over the unwanted passenger. "I'll take him to the captivity room," the mink volunteered.

"Wait, let me inspect him first," Shachi crouched down and felt along his pockets and pant legs – the man was only wearing a pair of old jeans and a ripped tank top. The concealed dagger was the only thing he was able to hide. After he was cleared, Bepo slung him over his shoulder. The redheaded man followed him, leaving the heart once again with Nami. "Take care of Captain."

She only nodded, focusing her attention on the injured man. "Law…"

"I was waiting for them to leave," he groaned before holding out his arm again. "Room." A few seconds later, the knife was removed and the wound was being held together. "I need actual stitches, but I can do them myself. Help me to the medical room."

"Okay…" she helped him up and they hobbled along in silence. "Seems kind of anticlimactic," she mumbled.

"It's not over yet. We still have a bunch of injured men to bring back," he replied with a sigh.

"How did they get beaten so easily?"

"There were a lot of them. He probably hid in all of their shadows and got them one by one, or controlled them to pick each other off," he grimaced in pain when she almost tripped, making him drop slightly.

"Sorry," she apologised.

They made it to the bay where Ikkaku seemed to just be awakening. She had blood all over her mouth and the front of her clothes, and she was holding her stomach in pain. Law hobbled over to his desk, bringing out a thin needle and some medical string. He lifted his shirt and went to work, gritting his teeth.

Nami couldn't bring herself to watch, instead moving to help the waking woman. "Hey, you alright?"

"Sore," she replied quietly. "Ice please."

The redhead walked over to where she knew the ice packs were, handing one to the raven. She put it on her stomach and winced at the cold, but her face soon turned to relief. Nami handed her a wet cloth to wipe the blood off. "What injury do you have?" she asked.

"I got drop kicked by a mink," she mumbled. "What happened out there?"

"That guy you were all after snuck on the ship and possessed some people. Law got his heart, Hiretsuna stabbed him, I beat him down, and he is now in the sea stone room," she caught her up.

"Impressive. Sorry I couldn't be much help." She laid in silence before gasping and looking at Nami. "Did he do anything to you or your son?!"

"He sure tried," she replied. "I apparently gained haki, though. It was pretty helpful."

"You have haki now?" Law joined the conversation.

She balled her hand into a fist and concentrated, letting it get covered in black. "It takes so much energy," she gritted her teeth, trying to hold it there.

"Then let it go," he replied gently, putting his hand on hers. "It's definitely haki, but you should only use it in emergencies considering your condition."

"How does Luffy use this all the time," she was in awe. "He never has a fight without it nowadays."

"Doctor Captain, sorry to interrupt," Ikkaku unzipped her boiler suit, making Nami's jaw drop in bewilderment. She wasn't wearing anything underneath but didn't hesitate to display her top half to the both of them. Mild jealousy started to bubble up again, but she tried her best to keep it down. "Is my stomach bruised? Bepo kicked me pretty hard," the injured woman distracted her from her emotional struggle.

Law went into doctor mode, showing his professionalism off to the pregnant woman. He gently touched her stomach and ribs. "Tell me if they hurt when I press down." He moved to different spots, getting a few winces from tenderness, but a certain spot on her left made her yelp out in pain.

"It seems like you have a cracked rib," he observed. "I'll do an x-ray to confirm. Nami, can you please leave the room? The radiation won't be good for you."

She nodded, surprised that her wild emotions were accepting of the two being in the room together. It wasn't like she meant to be jealous – Ikkaku was such a nice woman and treated her like a good friend. She was surprised she'd even lashed out and asked Law if they'd slept together before!

Shaking her head, she knew that wouldn't happen. Before Hiretsuna appeared, the man had just accidentally confessed that he was in love with her! She was determined to let him know how she felt.

Nervousness overpowered the jealousy and she found she couldn't stand still. She walked back and forth in front of the doors, waiting to be called in again. It was a short wait until the woman exited the room, now with a bandaged torso. "Good luck," she smiled, seemingly knowing what was about to happen.

Nami went in, twiddling her fingers. The man was at his desk, jotting down notes on a clipboard with Ikkaku's information on it. "Law…"

"Hm?" he looked up and met her eyes, making her feel antsy again.

"Can you follow me please?"

"Sure."

She moved at a slow pace, happy that the man could now walk again without wincing. _'He must've given himself a shot of morphine,' _she thought. She led him to their room, closing the door behind them.

"Law."

"That's me," he gave her a questioning look. She rarely seemed nervous, but her unnecessary repetitiveness was making him worry.

"I… I wanna reply to what you said earlier. In the kitchen."

He stood straighter, feeling panic start to set in again. "I didn't me-"

"I love you too," she said earnestly, looking into his golden eyes. "I have for a while, but that whole issue a few days ago threw me off… I also wanna tell you I forgive you, and I do trust you. I know you're such a caring person deep down, even if it's just for our son."

He moved forward, putting his arms around her and letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "I don't just love our son. I love _you_, Nami." And he could feel that was the earnest truth.

She smiled, content to be in his arms. She looked up, her eyes blurring with tears. He leaned down, hesitantly pressing his lips against hers. She welcomed him whole-heartedly, pressing back. It wasn't as heated as she knew their first kiss was. This was gentle, sweet and a bit uncertain.

It felt fragile. Law was finally putting his emotions on the surface, and she gladly accepted them, trying to make sure he _knew _that she wouldn't use them against him. This powerful, terrifying, deadly man was so _vulnerable _in this kiss, and her tears finally spilled over. She pulled away just lightly, putting her hand against his face. "I love you, Law," she whispered against his lips before pushing forward again.

They forgot about their surroundings. They forgot about his crewmates and the now-captive man. They forgot about their situation as competing pirate groups. Right now, it was just them. Nami and Law. He put his hand on her hip, pulling her closer and brushing the bump on her stomach with his thumb. Their son was the evidence of a destiny he'd never believed in before, he decided, as he knew there would be no happiness in his life without this woman right here.

They finally pulled apart, Nami resting her head on his chest. "I hate to end this, but we need to rescue your crew," she reminded him.

"You're right. Let's go," he kissed the top of her head before heading out with her following close behind.

* * *

**Hello!**

**Okay, so I know this might've come off a little cheesy. I'm aware. But I also think Law wouldn't really know the technical name of these feelings unless they smacked him in the face like stepping on the wrong end of a shovel. But hey, that's my own interpretation.**

**Hiretsuna! My favourite bad guy has finally appeared. And by favourite, I mean satisfying to hate. We clearly haven't seen the last of him, and I'm super excited for the next few chapters. Secrets will be revealed! Slight backstories! History! I basically have the next chapter all ready to go, but I don't know if I should publish it sooner or later since I am very slowly creeping up on what I'd already written.**

**I am also pretty excited about Nami's haki. I think if she actually developed it, that would be the coolest thing. Imagine all the enemies she could straight up destroy with a few angry punches.**

**Anyways, happy March! Watch out for Friday the 13th. Stay safe and healthy, and please remember that an entire pack of toilet paper shouldn't last only a week or two therefore you shouldn't need like 5 packs a household. Damn, people are really annoying me with all this stuff. Please do not comment against it, though. Just ranting a bit like I'm entitled to since I just posted a huge chapter (whoop whoop).**

**Thank you all for reading, commenting, favouriting and following. The support really keeps me going :)**


	9. The sunset town

Law and Nami came up with a priority list for those they needed to check on. They first went to the control room where Jean Bart was just waking up and looking around. He still looked a bit panicked, but upon seeing his captain's calm demeanor, he relaxed a bit. "The enemy is gone?" he asked, rubbing his head. Being possessed to the point of unconsciousness gave a wicked headache.

"He's being detained in the detainment room," the captain confirmed. "We need to get to Sansetta. Our men are injured."

"Right away," he saluted, grabbing his detached arm off the ground and reattaching it. He then flicked some switches and pushed a lever, grinning at the familiar buzz of the machines coming to life. They propelled forward at an increasing speed, estimating they'd reach land in around five minutes.

"We should go check on how they're doing with the prisoner," Law said, gesturing for the woman to follow him. He led her to a door she'd never opened, revealing a staircase to a lower level. Nami got a strange chill down her spine as they descended, coming into a large prison area with separated chambers with steel bars. At the other side was a thick red door with Shachi waiting in front of it, and a blue door on the opposite side where the training area was revealed to be.

The man's expression lit up when he saw the approaching couple. "This place was just starting to get creepy without company," he shuddered. "Bepo's just finishing up inside."

They opened the door and the two non-powered humans entered. In the middle slouched Hiretsuna, shackled by chains coming out from different corners and attaching to each limb. He was clearly weakened, and the woman could almost feel the energy being sucked out of her even though she wasn't weak to the ocean.

Bepo was tightening the shackles, making sure each one was double-locked. The detained man looked like he wanted to thrash and yell in retaliation, but the amount of stone he was in contact with seemed to almost drain his life. He tried to knee the bear, but it came as a pathetic and slow movement, allowing plenty of time for Bepo to get out of the way.

"You're pathetic," Nami growled at him.

"Said by the woman who can only be protected," he shot back, slumping again.

"Pretty sure I'm the one who took you out."

His face twisted with disgust. "You got lucky."

"Shut up," Law hissed from the doorway. "You're a child trafficker and murderer. You injured a lot of my crew and tried to kill my unborn son and his mother. Even Hikari won't deal with you harshly enough."

"Hi… Hikari?" Hiretsuna shook, his eyes widening with fear. "_She's _the one who put you to this?"

"I won't do too much to you during your stay here, but I'll enjoy knowing that she can do things a thousand times worse than I could ever imagine," he grinned maliciously. "Even if she doesn't, it still is pleasing to know that your own twin sister thinks you're a monster and will deal with you accordingly."

He turned and motioned for the three to follow. They locked the prison door and went back up to the main level. By then, they'd reached the island.

Stepping out of the submarine, Nami felt it was almost bittersweet. She finally made it to land but it was to save her friends, and she probably wasn't able to stay long.

Law was first to step on the island and turned to give her a hand down. She looked around at the town – it was small and shabby with houses looking like they were almost falling apart. They immediately grabbed a passing man's attention. "Have you seen a bunch of men who were fighting Hiretsuna?" the captain inquired.

"You… You aren't here to finish them off, are you?" the citizen asked, almost shaking.

"I'm their doctor. Can you take us to them?"

"What happened to the boogeyman?" the man gasped.

"The boogeyman?" Nami repeated, cocking her head to the side. "That's pretty fitting, actually…"

"We defeated him," Law was starting to lose his patience. "Where. Is. My. Crew?"

The man cowered a bit before pointing behind him. "They just finished taking them all to the medical clinic. It's just on the main road, but I can take you there if you want."

"Yes please," the woman answered cheerfully, not wanting Law to intimidate him further.

They were led through the small town, noticing that all the houses and buildings looked run-down. The people they saw looked decently content, but Nami couldn't help but feel a bit bad on their behalf.

She'd been there.

It wasn't long until they were brought to the tiny medical clinic, and she had to wonder how all seventeen guys were shoved into it.

"Penguin, are you awake?" the captain asked once he opened the door. The man with them slipped in and walked straight to the back. They saw that crew members were all laid out across the floor, so close together they were almost overlapping. The squad leader sat up upon hearing his name.

"Captain?"

"We're here to save the day," Nami winked, making the man smile a bit.

His grin soon turned to a worried frown. "You shouldn't be here… That man is on the loose!"

"He's being taken care of in the sea chamber," Law assured him.

"Amazing…" he moved to his knees and bowed his head. "I'm sorry I failed the mission! I let him get away and put your lives in danger!"

"It's fine," the captain forgave him. "Even we had some trouble with him. It's my fault for letting us underestimate his tenacity."

Penguin looked back up. "He somehow took over half of the crew's minds and made them attack us. We had no choice but to fight each other. He came when we were tired and personally dealt the finishing blows."

"He sure is a piece of garbage," Nami hissed at the thought, placing her hand on her stomach.

"Is Junior okay?!" the pirate stood with difficulty, somehow making his way over to her.

"He's fine, I think," she replied. "Hiretsuna didn't even touch me."

"Good," he breathed in relief.

The man who'd let them there came out from the back with another man dressed in a signature doctor jacket. "Hello… Who exactly are you?"

"This is my captain, who happens to also be our doctor," Penguin pointed to Law. "And this is his… Our…" He looked at Nami. "What exactly are you two at this point?"

The two looked at each other, hesitant on speaking. Clearly the status between them had changed, but they weren't about to awkwardly discuss it in front of his injured crew and a stranger.

Sensing the uncertainty, the squad leader looked back at the civilian doctor. "Let's just call her his significant other for now."

"Right…" the man looked at the woman. "Anyways, my name is Kiho Shibune. What brings you here?"

"We're here to take my crew back," Law announced. "Are there release forms?"

"Actually, they haven't been examined yet. They all just got here," he replied. "Since you're a doctor too, do you mind if we work together? I wanted to start with the more serious injuries but it looks like everyone has a few deep gashes."

"I was hoping to take them all into my medical bay and treat them myself," the captain looked closer at his crew's wounds. "I suppose it would be a lot better to keep them here until they're awake and stabilized."

"How much will this cost?" Nami asked habitually, preparing to haggle on behalf of her 'caretakers'.

"I've been told that you've taken care if Hiretsuna, so I'll do this for free."

They went to work with the woman and the barely conscious Heart pirate helping as much as they could. Between the four of them, it wasn't too long before the more serious wounds were stitched up. They were soon stabilized and ready to go whenever they woke up.

"Can we explore the town while we wait?" the woman asked hopefully, clasping her hands and giving puppy dog eyes.

Law couldn't resist her begging, giving her a light nod. "Sure, why not?"

"I think I'll just rest up here," Penguin gestured. "You two have fun."

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

After a brisk walk through the town and dipping her feet in the ocean, Nami was already bored. She knew from a conversation a few days before that it wasn't safe to eat anything here, and there were no major clothing shops to even browse through. Even so, she enjoyed the downtime spent with Law, who was now a little more willing to begrudgingly let her drag him around.

They soon got an alert that the doctor's office was getting lively, and it wasn't long until they were all boarding the ship. The injured men were being helped by the grateful civilians of Sansetta, and they were sent off as heroes.

"Well, that was quite something," Nami giggled, waving goodbye until the people were out of sight.

"Sure was," Law watched her carefully, now more determined than ever to make sure she was safe at all times.

"Sadly, this isn't over yet," Ikkaku walked over to them. "We still have Hiretsuna on board."

"True… I can't exactly rest easy until he's gone," the redhead shuddered.

"We're heading straight to Komeru Island to deliver him to Hikari," the captain pointed straight where they were going. "We should arrive by tomorrow evening."

"Why couldn't she get him herself if it's so close?" asked Nami.

Law gave her a reserved look. "You should ask her yourself once we get there."

She rolled her eyes. "You guys and your secrets."

Ikkaku stepped even closer to them, turning to her captain. "Is it alright if I talk to Nami in private?"

He nodded and walked to the other side of the deck, leaning on the rail and staring into the ocean. "I'll just be over here," he called loudly.

The raven looked intently at Nami. "I kind of overheard the outburst between you and Law earlier, and I can't help but feel it's partly my fault. I can't help but think that you might have gotten the wrong idea about me."

"Okay…" the navigator felt her face flush in embarrassment and slight annoyance that she'd heard the incident.

"I don't want you to be worried about anything between me and my captain, and I can assure you nothing has happened or ever will. Despite him being a clearly attractive man, I'm actually incapable of even thinking about him that way," she assured.

"Why's that?"

"I'm a lesbian."

"Oh." Nami instantly felt stupid for having moments of being so worried and jealous.

"I actually have a girlfriend," she grinned, looking past Nami at an image in her mind. "Her name is Rochelle."

"Is she a pirate too?" the redhead inquired.

Ikkaku's face fell. "She used to be part of the Heart Pirates, but she was stolen by a bad crew. Literally. She's super beautiful, so they sold her in a human auction. I was there, but I didn't have as much money as those assholes and I ran after her without the rest of the guys…" she clenched her teeth and fists at the memory.

Nami couldn't help but remember when her friend Camie was being sold, and they almost lost her. "She wasn't bought by a Celestial Dragon, was she?"

"No, but sadly that's the only good part. The people who bought her showed up out of nowhere and left without a trace – no one knows who they are or where they came from. When I tried to follow them by myself, I got seriously injured. Hikari got really upset with Law for losing her and letting me get that hurt, and he made a deal with her to keep me as part of the crew. We're always on the lookout for information on her whereabouts…" she started to tear up. "It's been four years. I don't even know if she's even alive."

The pregnant woman pulled her into a hug. "You'll definitely find her. We can ask Robin about it too, since she knows basically everything."

"Thank you," Ikkaku sniffled. "I… I just don't want you to not trust me around Law… Even if I wasn't gay, he only has eyes for you, you know."

"I know," she rubbed her back. "I'm sorry I got a little jealous about you. I swear it's just my stupid pregnancy hormones being defensive."

"It's okay. I just want us to be good friends, even when this is all over. It must be hard to go through this on a ship you wouldn't necessarily call home," she empathised.

"Yeah… I really do like talking to you," Nami smiled, pulling away. "You're one of the only reasons I'm still sane here."

They ended up chatting happily for quite a while. Law watched them from the other side of the deck, glad that any misunderstandings were cleared up. Hopefully there would be no more unnecessary jealousy in general, but he was a little worried about when they would arrive at their next destination. He knew Nami was a very confident woman, but her hormones were slowly taking charge and there was no knowing what would set her off.

He snapped out of his thoughts at hearing her laughter, a soft smile falling on his face as he watched her. At this moment, his concerns didn't matter. The second she'd told him she loved him, the walls between them had fallen. For once, he was prepared to be honest despite his guarded nature.

He shook his head, trying to shake off his train of thought. He was Trafalgar fricken Law, the surgeon of death and one of the worst generation. When did he become so _soft_?

Glancing again at the women, he knew. Only _she _could make him think and feel all these things. The Straw Hat group really were miracle workers – one of them had somehow managed to melt his icy heart and make him want her to be his forever.

That thought made his heart almost stop. Who would rush into _that_ mere hours after confessing their love? Idiots. That's who. And that was not who they were.

Or so he tried to convince himself.

Ikkaku glanced over his way and saw him eagerly wanting to talk to the navigator. She decided she had taken enough of her time during the romantic sunset, and made an excuse to go inside, planning to tell the crew to stay away from the deck for now.

Law silently thanked her and moved to take her spot next to Nami. "So, I guess she finally told you," he stopped beside her and leaned back against the rail.

"Why didn't you tell me she's a lesbian?" the redhead crossed her arms. "That would've saved a lot of trouble."

Law frowned. "It's not exactly my place. Besides, I already told you nothing had happened with her and we had no interest in each other. You're the one who was jealous."

She puffed up her cheeks in a pout. "I wasn't jealous until you put the thought in my head."

"Nami. I'm a _doctor_. Lesbian or not, she needed a pelvic exam at a point or two. I'm not going to deny my crew any medical procedures because of gender. All my practices are necessary and professional," he lectured.

She looked down, slightly ashamed of herself. He was being a great doctor to his crew, and she had to make it out to be more than it was. "I'm sorry…"

He stood from the railing and moved in front of her, taking both her hands in his and staring into her big brown eyes. "I understand how you might've thought it, though. But I _promise _that I'm not interested or even attracted to anyone other than you. I _love_ you."

The sincerity in his eyes and words convinced her completely, moving her enough for her eyes to fill with tears. "I love you too."

"I'm glad." His golden eyes shimmered with a rare happiness, making it hard to tell at a glance that he was one of the most dangerous pirates on the planet. He reached out to caress her face, brushing a few strands of hair away that the wind had blown, and leaned down to kiss her.

_'Maybe this is my reward for surviving such a messed up life,'_ he thought blissfully. Right now, nothing else mattered. It was just the two of them on the deck of a half-submerged submarine with the sounds of waves behind them. When they parted, the woman smiled at him before looking down, suddenly disheartened.

"What's wrong?" he asked, worried he'd done something to mess this up.

"I… I really don't know what to do once he's born," she placed her free hand on her stomach, looking out at the ocean.

Law glanced at the bump, deciding to say what had been on his mind. "I don't think I want him to be raised on a pirate ship."

"Me neither," she agreed, feeling a bit like she was betraying her crew by saying this out loud. "I don't want him to get wrapped up in this dangerous world, at least until he knows what he's doing."

They were silent again, watching the ocean go by as the sun set across it, scattering fiery colours along the water as far as they could see. The salty wind whipped through their hair, and the spray of the ocean moistened their skin as they stood in the serene moment.

"I'll be there with you," the man broke the silence.

She turned to him, shock filling her features. "You… You can't! This is one of the reasons I didn't want to tell you the baby's yours! The Heart Pirates and the one piece are your biggest priorities. I don't want to get in the way of that. What would happen to your crew?"

He shook his head. "They already know my decision without me having to tell them. They know that no matter what happens, I will be with you. Even if that means I'm not here anymore."

Her eyes filled with tears, both at the sentiment and with frustration at herself. "I wish I could make my mind up that easily. I don't know how I could bring myself to leave my crew…"

"The Straw Hats love you, and they'll respect whatever decision you make. Especially if it's the choice to keep your child from danger," he gently rubbed her back. "If they don't support you, are they really your friends?"

"Of _course _they're my friends…" she trailed off, knowing that meant they _would _be supportive, even if it meant she would leave them for a while. Robin had even made that clear before they'd parted. _Robin_. "Law," she looked back up at him, hesitating with her next words. "What are your current feelings towards Dressrosa?"

"What do you mean?" he cocked his head.

"Did Doflamingo being there affect your outlook on it as a country?"

"Depends on what angle you're looking at."

"Well… I heard the marines were basically driven out a year ago since the kingdom didn't want them there, and we would be seen as heroes, especially you," she hinted. "It would be a safe and welcoming place to live, but if all you'd think about is Doflamingo, the rest doesn't matter."

"That's true…" he trailed off, knowing where she was going with this. "Let me think about it."

"No rush. We still have another five months or so," she gently patted her stomach with a giggle.

They peacefully watched the sun drift below the ocean. Neither of them wanted to go inside, but Nami's shivering with the night breeze made the doctor usher her into the warmed ship.

There were no crew members to interrupt their walk, as the majority was sleeping either in their beds or in the medical bay based on their captain's orders. The few that were alright were busy doing their jobs or their own activities.

The couple stopped in the kitchen first, finding food left out for them from Shachi. Oddly enough, he was the secondary cook of the crew if Hitode was incapacitated. He wasn't half bad, Nami had decided, but no one was near Sanji's expertise. Still, she enjoyed the delicious flavors of the fried rice that had been left for them.

After eating, they made their way to their room, deciding easily that it was time to rest. The woman felt uneasy sleeping with an enemy on board, but after Law had assured her that there was always at least one powerful fighter being stationed outside the sea stone prison, she relaxed.

Especially when she heard the current guards were Bepo and Uni. She had faith in the mink's fighting skills, having seen them a few times and especially at Zou. The whole mink tribe was naturally gifted. That adventure seemed so long ago, even though it had only been a few years.

They went straight to getting ready, falling asleep in an embrace almost as soon as they hit the bed. Finally, things seemed to be going well.

**XxxxxxxxxxxxxX**

**Surprise! Early chapter!**

**I am back in the writing/editing mood so I will still post another chapter on the 8th :) Just figured the world needed a little more joy even if it is from a short chapter.**

**So, Ikkaku is the one with the kidnapped girlfriend from the summary! I almost forgot to write about it in this section of author's notes. Originally, this was chapter 4 or 5 and Ikkaku had been the mysterious subject of jealousy and this was where she and Nami would officially become friends... But I love her too much to not write about her in my added chapters. She's absolutely one of my favourites on the crew and isn't shown nearly enough. Two or three times briefly is not enough! But I can project a good portion of who I would want to be on her. Brave, wild and entertaining. **

**Also I will not take any hate about the fact she's gay. This is a fanfic site - did anyone really expect to not come across it at some point? To those who it actually matters that much then please unfollow me and this story as I, the writer, am pan myself lol.**

**On a separate note, here's a "fun" fact: I started writing this plus a few more of these chapters in a notebook over the course of three months about a year ago. I can't believe I've been working on this story for so long! After all this time, I'm finally getting more of a complete picture and determined a few months ago how it will end, although there is still a ****_long _****ways away.**

**Because it's a long ways away, I will try to push more on producing more chapters, otherwise it might be another year or two before it's complete.**

**Also, to those of you who are good at noticing things, I am phasing out the honorifics and will be going back and editing the previous chapters. It's become kind of a hassle to keep track of as I am Canadian and we just refer to each other as friend, pal, buddy, etc. I only did it because I find Law's '-ya' thing very cute but that's literally the only reason and the main characters are familiar enough with each other that I'm sure he'd drop it.**

**Please stay safe everyone! Thank you for your ongoing support!**


	10. Tensions

**Warning: This fic is rated M for a reason and some of that reason starts in this chapter.**

* * *

Nami ran down the submarine halls with a hefty bag of supplies, headed towards the men's quarters. She wasn't worried to go in - anything she would be appalled to see was off the table right now. The men resting inside were all injured and were on strict orders to restrict their movements until the wounds healed enough.

She knocked upon entering and flicked on a light, earning a few displeased groans. Most of them were sleeping but she breathed a quiet sigh of relief that the two she was here for were already up. "Hey guys," she whispered. "I don't know if you heard, but I'll be helping Law out today."

"Oh, we heard," Clione smirked. "I was looking forward to being treated by Nurse Nami."

"That outfit is very cute on you," Hitode complimented with a blush.

"Thank you," she smiled. "Now, who would like to go first?"

The cook volunteered and she set to work on unwrapping his old bandages. There was one on his chest for a shallower wound, but the more serious one was on the arm. They were all thankful for Law's skills. Without his devil fruit and expertise, it might've needed to be amputated, which she knew was a chef's worst nightmare.

"So how _did_ you end up wearing that?" Clione gestured to the nurse uniform she was wearing.

Nami rolled her eyes and thought back to earlier that morning.

XxxxxXxxxxXxxxxX

_Shachi and Bepo were finishing plating breakfasts for the crew when Law and Nami joined them in the kitchen. "Good morning," Nami greeted. "That's a lot of food for the two of you."_

_"We thought it would be enough for _you_," Shachi teased. "It's not covered in chocolate or vinegar, though, so I doubt you'll like it."_

_"I can eat regular food," she argued. "I'm not some sort of alien."_

_"Seemed like it when you covered jalapeños in caramel."_

_"… I didn't know you saw that," she crossed her arms defensively._

_"Anyways," Law decided to take over the conversation and turned to Bepo. "When will be arriving at Komeru Island?"_

_"We should get there by sundown," the mink replied. "Jean-Bart powered through the night, so I'll be taking over soon."_

_"I'll be focusing on the crew whose injuries can be healed quickly. That's less than half…" the captain did some mental calculations. "If I can get them all healed today, they can join us on the island tomorrow, but between them and the more seriously injured, I don't know if I'll have enough time."_

_"I can help," Nami found herself volunteering. "I was the medic of the Straw Hats before Chopper came on, and I've been reading all your books. I can at least do the basics."_

_Law pondered for a moment. "That's not a bad idea, actually."_

_"Finally, someone can wear that cute nurse uniform we bought forever ago!" Shachi cheered._

_The woman's eyes narrowed. "The what-now?"_

_The captain sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "We are _not _making Nami wear the nurse uniform."_

_"Why do you guys have one?"_

_"I was going to hire an assistant at one point and these idiots thought it should be a girl, so they went out and bought one."_

_Shachi folded his arms in a huff. "You should be thanking us that we got a normal one. There were a lot of alternatives."_

_"I'm not wearing it," she objected. "Normal or not."_

_"It actually wouldn't be the worst idea," Law replied. "The work I'll need you to do might get messy, and I'm sure you would charge me triple the cost of whatever gets stained. At least this way you could burn it after."_

_"Fine. I guess I'll wear it," Nami sighed, ignoring Shachi's mini celebration dance. She pointed her finger in Law's face with a stern expression. "On one condition!"_

_"What's that?"_

_"This information stays on this ship and I get to castrate whoever leaks it."_

_The dancing man stopped in his tracks, turning ghost-white._

_"Deal," Law smirked, glancing over at him. _

XxXXXXxXXXxxXxxXxXxxX

Nami finished tying the last wrap on Hitode as she ended her explanation. "So basically, if any of you let it slip that the great Nami let a bunch of boys dress her up in some nurse uniform, I am allowed to neuter you with your captain's help."

It was a lighthearted threat, they knew, but some of the men in the room who didn't interact with her as much as the others cowered a little bit. If they knew one thing about the Straw Hats, it was that they stuck to their promises as closely as they could.

"That's quite the punishment though, don't you think?" Clione joked, wincing when she started unraveling the bandage around his leg.

"I think it's suitable," she replied. Once unwrapped, she hissed in sympathy at the look of his major wound – a long, deep cut down his thigh. It was a miracle he had enough blood left in him after the battle to stay alive. "I can't believe you were able to walk back on the ship."

"Eh, I've had worse injuries," he assured, trying to brush it off. He inhaled sharply when she patted a cloth full of mild soap along it.

"Sorry," she mumbled, focusing on cleansing it. If any of these men got infected it would be more inconvenient than just making sure it was done right in the first place. She then flushed it out with saline and re-wrapped it. "Okay, where else are you hurt?"

"Just some minor scrapes and bruises. Those are fine on their own," he assured, waving her away. "I'm sure Captain would want to spend more time with you wearing _that_, so we'll let you go."

"I doubt it, but I'll go anyways. It looks like I interrupted a group nap," she gestured to the rest of the cabin filled with men trying to sleep. She began placing the items in the bag and left, making sure to turn the light off on her way out.

Once she closed the door, she heard the men inside start chattering excitedly about 'Nurse Nami'. _'Great. They're going to remember this forever,'_ she thought, trying to resist a small smile. It was kind of nice to be appreciated as a helper, even if it was just for tending to wounds in a costume.

She made her way back to the infirmary to swap out the soiled bandages and see if Law had any new orders for her. This was more fun than she anticipated. Not that she was happy people had gotten hurt, but this was a nice change of pace and eased her boredom. If she was needed like this again, she was sure she would jump at the chance.

Once she arrived, she was greeted with the sight of the Heart captain on one of the beds, preparing to work on his own wounds. He glanced over at her before sighing and re-focusing. "I don't know if I've told you, but most of my crew knocks when they aren't expected to be here."

"First, I'm not your crew, and second, I _should_ be expected. All the supplies are in here," she retorted, moving to the back of the room to dispose of the used bandages.

"I'll admit you were quicker than I thought."

"Don't worry, I was thorough," she assured. Once the bag was emptied, she transferred the supplies to a clean bag and threw the dirty one into a pile to be washed. "I'll take your surprise as a compliment, though."

There was a pause before he let out a long sigh. "Actually, I might need your help myself."

"Oh?" She walked over to him, curious.

He laid back and pointed down at the stab wound on his stomach. "I need this cleaned and re-stitched. I was in such a rush yesterday that I just did a temporary fix. It's very sore, and I am fine enduring the pain, but you're here so why not take the easy route?"

Her smile faltered as nervousness set in. Doing her own handywork on an expert doctor? "Okay, but don't complain if it isn't perfect," she warned.

"Fine by me," he sat back and closed his eyes to relax a bit. "Everything you need is on the tray. Do you need a walkthrough?"

She looked to his other side and inwardly smacked herself for not noticing the standing tray earlier. "I'm familiar with the process," she answered. "Do you want anesthetics?"

"No, save it for the rest of the crew. It's expensive," he declined.

"Suit yourself." She took a small pair of surgical scissors and cut where the half-assed stitch was tied and pulled it out, wincing when he let out a soft hiss. "Sorry. You sure about the numbing?"

"Yes. It's fine. Don't get distracted or deterred by sounds of me being in pain," he instructed. "Keep going unless I tell you to stop."

"Okay."

She cleaned the wound, taking a moment to lightly touch around it with a sad frown. He'd been injured because of a fight to protect her in the first place. Shaking off those thoughts for the moment, she picked up the curved needle with the thread already attached and a pair of what looked like a cross between tweezers and pliers.

"Alright, here I go," she warned. She tried her hardest to refrain from looking at his face. Any expressions of pain would only make her falter, and that wasn't needed right now. Once she was at the end of the wound, she tried to gently pull the last part together and tied the thread, cutting it off the needle. "I'm done," she announced, wiping her forehead with her arm as she felt the tension leave her body.

"Thank you," he said, groaning as he sat up.

"I'll wrap it up now." She quickly grabbed a fresh bandage despite his protests to save it for the others. Doctor or not, he was just as important and an infection would be just as annoying, so she set to work anyways. He couldn't do anything but sigh as she worked the wrap around his torso, securing it with a safety pin.

She brushed her fingers along the area above the bandage to make sure it wasn't digging into his skin. Once satisfied that it was good to go, she realised she'd been rubbing the base of his chest without any thought to how it might look. Her eyes slowly wandered up to his, a little worried about his reaction, only to be met with a look of amusement.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" he teased.

"Oh please," she shot back with an eye roll. "Aren't you supposed to be professional in this room?"

"Well, yes, but I'm only asking a simple question."

"Those questions can wait," she huffed, putting her hands on her hips. "Don't tell me I'm the only one serious about getting all _your_ crew healed up?"

That seemed to snap him out of his teasing. With a sigh, he got off the bed. "That's why I was fixing myself up first. Or at least, I started to. Now I'm free to get the more serious wounds. I'll get you to accompany me. I'll mend the bones and help the internal issues, you can do exactly what you did for me. It will be faster that way."

"What about the guys with the easier wounds?" she asked. "You said earlier I would be helping them."

"They'll be easy and quick. Based on your job on me, you'll be more of an asset and time-saver with the others."

The off-handed praise made a warm giddy feeling spread within her chest and head. It was rare to get serious compliments from the man, especially when it came to things he was a genius at. Being acknowledged on her skill felt even better considering she'd been studying medical books for the purpose of helping her crewmates. Although these guys weren't Straw Hats, they were starting to feel like another group of nakama, as much as she tried to deny it.

Without another word, she was handed the bag she'd conveniently restocked, he took an even bigger one, and they were on their way to the secondary men's cabin where the heavily wounded were organised to stay.

They made quick work of it. Law was able to dissect and fix up multiple men at a time, and Nami only got faster with every person she worked on. The wounded were too tired to outwardly comment, but she knew the outfit was going to cause yet another stir once they were healed up. She'd have to tell them of the promise made to her once they were in their right minds, but for now, she was at ease knowing they would still be confined to the room until that day came.

Even though it was faster than initially thought, the procedures still did take up a few hours. By the time they left the room, it was well past lunchtime. Law suggested she go ahead and eat something while he took a look at the men with less severe injuries and promised to join her for the official dinner that his able-bodied crew would make.

She was thankful to change out of the uniform as it still wasn't growing on her, though she had to admit she _did _look amazing in it like everything else. A soft, loose red shirt and a pair of sweat shorts were calling to her after having to suffer the tightness around the stomach. If she was going to continue wearing it, she was going to make some adjustments.

Her stomach growling was her cue to follow the doctor's suggestion of eating, leading her to wander the ship once more.

XxXxXxX

"Komeru Island up ahead!" Shachi burst into the kitchen where Law, Nami, Ikkaku and Uni were finishing helping Penguin deliver portions to the bedridden crew, the other half having been able to eat in the dining hall.

"We're there already?" the navigator asked, surprised. They were told they'd get there at sundown, and the sun wasn't due to dip below the horizon for a while yet.

"Well, it's about an hour away. Still, we've made good time!" the announcer grinned. "Bepo said something about a sudden helpful wind change. Either way, I'm so excited to see Princess Hikari soon!" his eyes shone at the thought.

"I almost forgot we're meeting a princess. I suppose I'll have to change again," Nami sighed, looking down at her comfortable outfit.

"She doesn't care about appearances when it comes to women, so don't worry about it," Law assured her. "Besides, you always look good no matter what you wear."

She blushed a bit at his comment while the others in the room gave each other knowing glances.

"So… Are we going to finish this up?" Penguin interrupted, holding up a tray of food.

"Oh! Right. Yes." Nami took one as well and followed him out with the rest of the helpers behind them.

The hour passed quickly as they sorted the after-dinner matters and packed overnight bags. Due to the situation with Hiretsuna, Law, Nami, and a handful of the other pirates were invited to stay overnight in the castle. It was for extra protection measures and a lot of paperwork and meetings in the morning. He was due to be put on trial as soon as possible.

Ikkaku had gone to help Bepo at the helm, running out in excitement to let everyone know when they were surfacing. Nami was eager to see the island, especially since it was her friend's home. Her excitement was contagious, and soon they were all standing on the deck looking at what seemed to be a shining city just off the shore. Tall modern buildings stood proudly, their windows reflected the setting sun, making it seem like a thousand gems were just beckoning for the cat thief to approach.

"Wow, it's beautiful," she whispered in awe. "I've never seen buildings like this!"

"You haven't seen them up close yet. It's even more magnificent," Ikkaku assured with an eager grin. "Man, I missed this place, but those two might've missed it more." She lazily pointed to where Shachi and Penguin were holding each other and jumping in a circle out of joy.

"We're going to see Hikari, we're going to see Hikari!" they sang.

"I don't think I've seen them this excited before," the navigator laughed.

"I almost killed them at Amazon Lily," Law entered the conversation, leaning back against the rail. "They were this bad, but there were more women for them to fawn over. It almost wasn't worth it for them to be part of my crew at the time."

"They almost got killed by the _women_," Bepo added, nearing the trio. "It was a scary island. I was sad there were no female bears, though."

"Sadly, Hikari only encourages them," Ikkaku sighed, shaking her head. "She's always loved praise, even though her favourite kind is from-"

She was cut off by the ship bumping lightly against the dock. Nami had barely noticed they'd gotten to shore so quickly, but was even more surprised to see a group of people waiting for them on the sand. They were still too far to properly make out, but she didn't have to wait long to get closer.

Law was first off the ship and extended his hand for her to grab. She hopped off the deck, happy to be on a big island. Sansetta had been poor and run down but it had a quaint feel. In front of them here were lavish buildings with some made almost entirely out of glass or metal that reflected the sun in a lovely way.

The streets were made up of white brick, and up ahead were colourful stalls selling food, knickknacks, and jewelry that contrasted the simple colours around them. Even though the end of the day was drawing near, this city was bustling with nicely dressed people going about their shopping. This was clearly a prosperous country.

As Nami observed in bewilderment, wondering how she had never heard of this rich country before, the streets suddenly grew quiet.

All the citizens stopped talking and moving, shifting their attention to a figure who was making her way through the parting crowd. The navigator gasped as she came into view, becoming clearer with every step.

It was a woman with striking beauty that almost paralleled Boa Hancock's. She had long, fiery red hair with a heavily decorated silver tiara resting perfectly on top. She wore a turquoise dress that had an a-line form fitting top that flowed out loosely at the waist into a skirt that stopped just below her knee. On her neck was a diamond necklace on a silver chain that matched the crown.

She walked with such grace that Nami felt like an uncivilised brute that wasn't standing straight enough, even though her stomach was feeling particularly heavy at the moment from both the baby and sudden anxiety. She held her breath as she approached them, with her only thoughts being that this woman _had _to be some sort of goddess.

"Welcome to Komeru Island," she greeted the pirates, looking across all of them and stopping at Nami, breaking into a wide smile. "My name is Princess Hikari. It's nice to finally meet you!" She suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Nami's hands, shaking them excitedly. "You're so much lovelier in person!"

"Hello… I'm Nami," the woman replied before looking to Law for help.

He just crossed his arms and gave her a lazy smile, earning a slight pout. It seemed he was right – her outfit didn't seem to put off the woman at all.

"I've been so excited to meet you, Nami!" the princess almost shouted. "I've heard so much about the Straw Hats. I'm such a fan!"

_'Oh no, not another Bartolomeo,'_ she thought, realising this could get weird real fast. She stepped back, clearing her throat and trying to think of something to say. Before she could, though, her partner decided to finally step in.

"Good evening Princess Hikari," Law greeted with a quick bow.

"Oh," the princess let go of the other woman's hands and dipped gracefully into a light curtsey. "Hello, Law. I almost didn't notice you next to this gem here."

"Princess!" Penguin and Shachi sprung forward as if to embrace her. In the blink of an eye, they were knocked on the ground with the woman towering above them with a steel fan in her hand.

"Hello perverts," she still smiled wholesomely at them, her words seeming more affectionate than insulting, making them groan in both pain and joy.

Ikkaku stepped forward, holding her arms out for a hug. "Don't be so distracted by other pretty girls, Hikarin."

The woman raced forward, almost mirroring the men's previous motions as she ran into her arms. "Ikkini!" They were still for a moment, the redhead nuzzling down into her shoulder. "I missed you. You were gone too long this time!"

"I'm sorry. I'll try to come home more," the pirate promised, patting her head.

"You guys seem really close," Nami commented.

The raven nodded. "Hikarin and I grew up together here. My parents used to be royal advisors," she explained. "By the way, she's quite a fan of a select few pirate groups despite being a princess. The Straw Hats are a particular favourite, along with the Kujas and us."

"The Kujas are so beautiful… Who wouldn't love them?!" Hikari mumbled defensively. "The Straw Hat ladies are also lovely! I wish I could meet Miss Robin in person as well."

Nami blushed at the compliment. "You should look in a mirror – you're one of the most beautiful women I've ever met!"

She shot up from hugging Ikkaku and once again took her hands. Her eyes, which she noticed were bright green, were shimmering with joy. "You honestly think so? Thank you!"

The navigator nodded enthusiastically, earning a hug.

The man next to them sighed. "Your highness, are you sure you want to act like this in front of your people?" Law reminded her, pointing at the distant crowd.

She puffed up her cheeks. "They all know I'm very affectionate towards women. What's a few happy hugs between girls?"

"Well, you've hugged the girls to dizziness and left my boys nearly unconscious," he pointed out.

She backed away the navigator and patted her dress down promptly, returning to a high-class demeanor. "I suppose you're right," she muttered. "I can do this in the privacy of the palace."

"That reminds me that we should get down to business," the captain said firmly. "Your brother."

The atmosphere got tense immediately. "He's not my brother," she turned up her nose. "We disowned him."

"I understand. He's currently on my ship, though, and I would prefer him not to be there. Is there anyone in charge of evil devil fruit users?"

"Right. Yes I do." She took out her steel fan again and held it straight up, making a strange motion with a flick of her wrist.

"Princess!" Two men appeared suddenly as if coming from the shadows. They knelt at her feet, crossing their arms over their chests.

"Hiretsuna has been captured. Take him to the prison to await trial," she ordered.

"Understood."

"I'll bring him out," Law stated, reluctant to invite strangers on his ship. He teleported inside, reappearing a few minutes later with the drained criminal.

The guards put on gloves that were laced with the sea stone. They took him from the captain, walking him through the pirates.

Hiretsuna lifted his head enough to meet his sister's eyes, glaring defiantly. "I still have loyal followers here. You can't bring me down!"

"Watch me," she spat, narrowing her eyes. "The whole kingdom knows what heinous crimes you've committed."

The guards jerked him forward once their princess turned her back to him, ending their short conversation. "Move," one of them hissed at the disgraced man.

"I'm the prince of this island! You can't treat me like this!"

"You've been abdicated. Deal with it," the other guard said coldly. They finally managed to escort him out of the area, taking a route around the city to avoid the crowds.

Once they were gone, the princess looked at the sky and gave a slight hum. "We should probably make our way to the palace if we want to get there before dark. Despite the beauty and wealth of this country, this area in particular can get pretty dangerous at night."

With their agreement, she led the way. Law left most of his crew to watch the ship overnight, bringing only Ikkaku, Nami, Bepo, Shachi, and Penguin. The last two were only there because they would be the main protestors to not being able to go on the rich island and be apart from the captain and Nami.

The cat thief tried to force herself to ignore the stalls, as they were carrying loads of jewellery, reminding herself that she only stole from pirates. She had to keep from gasping in awe at all the fashionable clothes and people, and the many, many more stands filled with gold.

Part of her was reminded that they were being guided by the island's own princess, making stealing even _more_ of a no-no. But the way the earrings sparkled… The necklaces shimmered… The rings glowed…

Law gently took her hand and pulled her to the middle, letting Penguin behind her and Bepo on her other side to block the temptation. She squeezed his hand, grateful for the help. It had been a while since she'd seen this much gold in one place and her instincts were on overdrive already.

It wasn't too long before a tall, grand building was in their path. Her eyes once again almost bulged out of her head at the sight. "What material is that palace made of?"

"It's made of marble," the princess replied. "It was built two hundred years ago."

"Wow…"

"As you've probably noticed, this is one of the richest countries in the world," Law explained. "Their mines produce more gems and gold than anywhere else. I'm surprised you didn't know that, being the money enthusiast you are."

"I was just asking myself about that. This might just be the true treasure island," she whispered as if in a trance. It lived up to the nickname more than that one phony island she'd been to on one of her first adventures with Luffy.

They soon arrived at the gate with it opening instantly for the princess and her company. They were led through a charming, lush garden with a fountain on each side of the path. The palace doors were opened for them as well, and she looked around in amazement.

The inside was _massive_, the entrance hall itself being bigger than the Sunny even if all the floors were lined up together. There was a wide selection of doorways to go through at the edges of the room, and two curved staircases leading to a balcony and a second floor, which was where they were led. The interior was fully painted a soft shade of blue with white marble floors and red rugs lined with gold on the stairs.

"I suppose I should show you the guest quarters for now. We will talk more in the morning," Hikari said, noting the time. "You're probably all on edge from transporting Hiretsuna. I'll let you relax a bit."

"Sounds good," Law agreed with a nod.

"Ikkini can share my room. I take it you and Nami will be sharing one too?"

"Yes please," the Straw Hat replied a bit quickly, not wanting to be left alone in the palace. She couldn't help but wonder about the princess sharing a room with her friend, but she wasn't about to question it.

"And you three would probably like getting your own individual ones as usual," she addressed the remaining men, who nodded vigorously. It was rare that they didn't have to share a room, or sometimes even a bed. The visits to this island were a definite treat.

The princess showed them their quarters on the second floor and bid them goodnight, informing them that there was a unisex bath a few doors down and a natural hot spring in the back of the first floor, which the other Heart Pirates announced they were definitely going to make their way to.

Nami closed her eyes and sighed longingly at the thought of a nice hot bath. Law only had a shower in his room, and she was hesitant to use the main crew bathroom at this point. It felt like ages since she was able to soak her worries away.

They entered their room and she was once again taken aback at how magnificent it was. The walls were painted eggshell with a light beige carpet. A white canopy bed stood in the middle of the far-left wall, the lace curtains falling around them being a soft white. The bed sheets were lilac and the pillowcases were silver. The room was carpeted as a lilac as well, and the dressers, desk and couch were all pearl white. There was a walk-in closet on the left side of the room as well and a bathroom on the other.

"This room is so beautiful!" she exclaimed. "I always wanted to sleep on one of these!" She ran up to it and jumped backwards onto the mattress, bouncing off it a bit before nestling into the pillows. They were as soft as feathers.

"It really is," Law agreed. "I usually stay on the ship when I visit and let the crew stay here. I guess I've been missing out."

"I wanna go to the hot springs," Nami sat up, looking hopefully at the man.

He crossed his arms and shook his head. "Pregnant women shouldn't go in hot springs. Besides, I get the feeling it's not divided and the others will probably beat us to it."

"What?! Can I take a bath, then?"

"No."

"But you let me take one on the Sunny!"

"That was because you said it would be quick. Pregnant women shouldn't submerge their bodies in anything above basically body temperature for more than a few minutes," he lectured. "If you really want to go, I'll come with you. You'll have to rotate in and out of the water to not raise your core temperature."

She pursed her lips, annoyed. "Fine." She marched into the bathroom, her steps being a little softer on her way back with the towels. "I can still sit under the shower for however long, right?"

"Yes," he permitted. They soon left the room with towels in hand. Law led them to where the baths were, thankful that the others had chosen the hot springs. Not that he blamed them – it was a rare luxury as well. He felt a bit sorry for Nami that she was missing out, but it couldn't be helped. He wasn't about to budge on her and the baby's safety or her privacy.

Once they closed the door and walked past the curtains into the changing area, he started to strip down, putting his clothes in a basket to the side. He was glad he had the foresight to change the heavy wrapping around his wound to a waterproof patch, somehow knowing he was going to get dragged into some sort of wet scenario.

Glancing over to see if she was finished undressing, he was stuck in place, mesmerized by the way her long, luscious orange hair draped and curled around her back and shoulders. He gazed downwards and felt his blood turn hot with the way her waist narrowed and then flared out to her wide hips and round bottom. Her long legs that seemed to go down forever, finally ending at her small ankles and surprisingly delicate-looking feet, were enough to make his throat feel dry. When she turned, he admired the curves of her large breasts, noting how they were almost perfectly symmetrical. She was an _extremely _attractive woman, enough so to be considered a perfect model.

He mentally kicked himself at the thoughts, swearing to focus solely on relaxing and getting clean. This was _not _the time to think about how much she affected him, even though it was the first time since the one night that they were letting themselves be in this position. It didn't help they'd just confessed their feelings too. If he thought she still hated him, he would've had better self-control.

As he looked her up and down subconsciously, she finally put her clothes to the side and looked over, noticing his staring and deciding to do some herself despite feeling suddenly embarrassed. Skipping past his face, she started at his tastefully broad shoulders, trailing down to his _very _toned chest and abs that she'd been patching up earlier, tattooed with the flared heart with the smile in the middle. The patch instead of the bandage was a surprise, though, and she wondered when he'd changed it over. Ignoring it, she refocused on the non-injured parts, following the curve of the heart tattoo. The base point stopped just above his navel…

She had to force herself to stop there, knowing if she looked farther there would be no returning from overwhelming thoughts. Her hormones were already trying to push her to the edge of the situation, and she didn't need another reason to go for it. When she looked back up, all she saw were glowing golden eyes. It was as if he was just barely holding himself back from devouring her. "I guess I wasn't fully prepared," he admitted once their eyes met.

"Me neither," she whispered, her heart speeding up. The reasons _not _to make some sort of move were fading from her mind as she got lost in his gaze. She swallowed her nervousness and willed herself to saunter towards him, watching his breath hitch as she flipped her hair back. He was just as exposed as she was, and that helped her confidence enough to tease him. She wrapped her arms lightly around his neck, keeping a bit of distance between them. Angling her face up to look more enticing, she grinned. "Like what you see?"

"Yes," he nearly growled, resisting touching her back. He knew the moment his hands touched her skin in this state, there would be too little to hold him back.

She pouted playfully, seemingly reading his thoughts. Him not touching her didn't offend – instead, it spurred her amusement, starting a nice little game. "Law," she purred, "you'll wash my back, right?"

"If you want," he agreed, looking towards the bath. The reason they were there in the first place.

She brought one hand in between them, lightly brushing her fingers down the top of his chest. "And maybe my front?"

"Careful Nami," he warned, his breathing becoming uneven. "It's not smart to tempt me."

"Oh?" she gave a playful pout, moving close enough to brush her chest against his. "And why not?"

He cursed and pulled her straight into his body. "Please. Not now," he whispered, sending shivers down her spine. She could feel him trembling, fighting to hold on to the last of his control.

He let her go and she reluctantly backed away, the skin where he touched feeling like it was on fire. It wasn't like she _didn't _want something to happen, but that would be better saved for after a proper discussion. Besides, she wasn't sure if something like that would be a danger to the baby, and that thought was enough to settle her a little.

They made it into the actual bath house, the tension fading with the steam and a light scent of flowers set up around the entrance. Nami sat on one of the benches with a happy sigh, scooping some water in a bucket and dumping it over her head, sighing in contentment at the warm water.

Law sat next to her, doing the same. They sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, enjoying the feeling of the water rinsing their bodies and trying to ignore what almost started before.

The woman got up to grab some soap and sponges, setting them between them. After washing her hair, she turned away from him and looked over her shoulder. "Can you wash my back, for real?"

With a nod, he soaped up one of the sponges and waited for her to move her hair. He began to delicately run it along her back, rubbing gentle circles. Once he was done, he filled a bucket and rinsed her off. She turned back with a smile, gesturing for him to turn around and taking the extra sponge. She repeated his movements, feeling him tense with her touch.

He'd never really had anyone wash his back for him as an adult before, but he was reminded that of all people, it was the attractive woman behind him who was doing it with the occasional brush of her delicate fingers along his skin. He felt her stop and splash the warm water on him to rinse him off.

When he turned around again to thank her, he saw she was already focused on scrubbing the rest of herself down. The sudden urge to touch her soapy chest was overwhelming, taking control of his body. He blamed male curiosity as reached out and planted one of his hands firmly on a breast, earning a surprised squeak from the woman. It was soft, squishy and slippery, convincing his other hand to join in.

She let herself be pulled over to him and planted in his lap for some sudden heated kisses while his hands still groped and explored, massaging the suds more into her skin. They moved down to her stomach, rubbing the edges of the bump and spurring him to kiss her more heatedly. After a while of that, they started to slide down further…

"W-what do you think you're doing?!" she asked, breaking the kiss, though for reasons unknown she didn't push him away. "You _just _told me to not start anything."

Taking his hands away, he turned in embarrassment. "Sorry. I just really wanted to know what it felt like and got carried away."

"Really? Have you never taken a bath with a woman before?"

"Nope."

"Oh." She looked away, her face growing hot as she thought about what they might've done if she hadn't stopped him. Maybe this whole bath thing was a bad idea in the first place. She shyly moved back to her own seat and rinsed herself off again, turning the setting colder to lower the sudden heat she was feeling. "Well now you know. Let's go in the water."

"Okay," he agreed quickly. "I'll follow you in a second. Remember though, you have to rotate to keep your temperature down."

"Yeah, yeah," she rolled her eyes, getting up with unsteady legs and walking over to the change room to put her hair up before entering the large bath. There were stairs leading into it, and she hummed in bliss when she dipped her feet in. "Oh my god, this is the perfect temperature." She continued down and moved to a bench that was installed along the side, submerging everything except her head.

After he rinsed off, Law followed, making it only halfway down the steps before stopping.

"What's wrong?" she asked with a worried frown.

"It's deeper than I thought it would be, and I might lose my abilities if I go in all the way. It's why I shower instead of bathing for the most part."

"It's not like we're getting attacked, and I'll make sure you don't drown," she assured.

He sighed in defeat, knowing she would probably drag him down in there with her if he kept resisting. As he lowered himself into the warm water, he could feel his powers draining and his body felt like it was trying to lock up. It was uncomfortable for him to feel powerless. He'd almost forgotten what life was like before he was fed the heart-shaped devil fruit, though this feeling was beyond that. The wound stung with the heat, but he decided to grit his teeth and deal with it as he waded over to sit next to her.

He couldn't help but be a bit envious that she seemed very relaxed, bathing peacefully as if she didn't suspect or anticipate that someone could suddenly jump out and attack. Was she letting her guard down? It was hard to imagine, as he imagined being a known thief and pirate would train her to have it up especially at vulnerable times like this. Perhaps it was because she knew that if someone _were _to attack, he would protect her at any cost even without his powers.

He wondered how she'd gotten so far up the pirate ladder with only average talent at hand to hand combat, extensive control over her climatact and extreme intelligence that had built her into a useful tactician and negotiator. Yes, she had a powerful force that was a living thunder cloud, but what heavy damage could she do beyond that when it came to an overbearing physical attack? Her newly gained haki was exactly that: new. There was no way he was going to let her practise with it in her current condition as it would take way too much energy.

He drifted into thoughts of maybe teaching her some of the fighting techniques he'd learned at a young age once things once the baby was born. A little extra training wouldn't hurt, especially since there was a great chance that they would be hunted. He cursed remembering Hiretsuna's revealing that there were rumours floating around about them. They were true, of course, but it was unsettling not knowing who'd heard that information already.

The sound of the water suddenly moving brought him out of his worrying.

"I guess I should get out before we're boiled alive," Nami joked morbidly, sitting on the wall of the enclosure.

"I see you've picked up some of Robin's dark humour," he grimaced, standing slowly with the help of the wall. "I need to cool down, too."

"It must suck to be a devil fruit eater," she gestured at his struggling, grabbing his arm to help steady him. "I can't imagine not being able to swim or bathe."

"When I was younger, I thought it was stupid too."

"At least yours saved your life. It's not like you were a glutton and ate one without realising it," she giggled, clearly referring to her captain. "Luffy got lucky to eat something useful, though."

They made it to the stairs, sitting at the top with just their feet dipped in. "He's pretty powerful, considering rubber is a stupid-sounding ability," Law admitted.

"True, but I've fought worse. There was this one guy who could summon biscuits… Like, he was tough to beat, but it sounds dumb."

Law chuckled. "What powers would you want if you had a choice?"

She placed a finger on pursed lips as she thought for a moment. "If I had to eat a devil fruit, I think I'd want some sort of bird one. I don't care what kind I would turn into, as long as I could fly endlessly."

"Oh?"

"I would fly over the ocean to help make my maps. I could also get away from enemies a bit easier," she giggled. "Mostly the map thing, though."

"Being a bird would be quite freeing," he replied. "If I could have something different… I think I'd like something to do with time or seeing the future."

Nami almost burst out laughing "I… I'm so sorry," she choked back the convulsions. "You just don't strike me as the type to worry about the future."

"If I couldn't use my current ability, I would like to see what routes I can take medically and what the end result would be," he explained. "I suppose I would also look in on you and our son, too."

"But that takes the surprise out of life. Are you that worried about us?"

"With the types of people we encounter, yes."

"Fair enough."

After another quick dip, they made the decision to go back to their room. Nami felt refreshed as she dried herself off, letting her hair back down. They put their clothes on, careful to refrain from starting something again, and walked back to their room.

Law stopped at the doorway and looked around the room suspiciously. "Someone's been in here," he mumbled, his eyes landing on a slip of paper left on the dresser. He read it quickly, rolling his eyes at the signature.

_'This is your chance to officially make her yours again! Good luck Captain __😉 – your best wingman, Shachi'_

"What is it?" The woman stood on her tip toes to read over his shoulder.

"He's an idiot," he groaned.

"Because carrying your baby, admitting I love you and moving into your room isn't good enough," she said sarcastically, crossing her arms.

"Oh? So you've been mine pretty much from the beginning?"

"I don't _belong _to anyone, Law, but if it helps you sleep at night, then sure. I'm yours."

"Aww, so sweet," a voice gushed behind them.

They whipped around, now realising they'd left the door open. Penguin leaned against the frame, smiling innocently at them as if he didn't know anything about the note. "You've come a long way since… Yesterday? Y'know, when you weren't quite sure what to label yourselves as."

"Looks like interference sure helps the clarification, but there's something even better," Shachi appeared seemingly out of nowhere with a devious grin.

"Shachi I will kill you," Law growled, holding up the note.

"Hey now," Penguin tried to ease the situation, "it's perfectly natural to have sex with your girlfriend."

The woman's jaw dropped in surprise at their sudden boldness in this matter_._ Normally she didn't mind men associating her with sex, but after all this time with them she was surprised they were trying to push this between her and Law. "This is none of your business," she finally said with a harsh glare at the two.

"Yeah, shut up idiot," Shachi said hypocritically, punching his companion in the arm.

"But everyone's expected it since we left the Straw Hats," he didn't listen. "And you don't need to be so reserved on the ship. It's not like we haven't heard you two before, anyways…"

"Wait… What?" Law asked, his eyes growing wide.

"Yah, like four months ago or something. It wasn't a huge secret. What do you expect from stumbling into the sub drunk? At least now you would be aware enough to keep it more private," the redheaded man smirked. "Not that we minded watching a bit."

"Inappropriate," Penguin hit the man.

"This whole thing is inappropriate."

Nami was scarily quiet, looking up with a sudden intensity that made all three men jump back a bit. "What did you see?"

The two crew members looked at each other. "You might want to sit down for this," Penguin hid his blush under his deep hat.

The couple gestured for them to enter the room, closing the door behind them. They all sat on the provided couch, the woman burying her face in her hands. "Okay, go ahead," she coaxed.

"I'll start off by begging both of you not to kill us," Shachi pleaded, clasping his hands together. "And by us, I mean basically the entire crew."

"What?!" Her hands flew down, revealing her horrified expression. They had all seen or heard something and acted normal this entire time?

"Let them explain," the captain calmed her, shooting an uncertain glance at the men. "What happened that night?"

"Alright… A few months ago, we were on Calaway Island to have our annual alliance party with the Straw Hats…"

_xxxxxxx_

_"Hey, Zoro! I bet you can't drink this entire bottle of sake in under a minute!" a tipsy Shachi dangled the bottle of mentioned alcohol in front of the bounty hunter, almost dropping it. He laughed when the man took it and started to chug._

_It was always a good time being docked with the Straw Hat pirates. They drank and ate to their heart's content with friendly banter and unnecessary but fun competitions. This was not their first annual party, and by now, the crews mingled effortlessly. Their alliance was no longer just business – they had become good friends despite the competition for their ultimate goal that was the One Piece._

_The redhead pouted a bit when he glanced over at his captain, noticing that he was avoiding conversations more than usual. Something had been bothering the man lately, and it was apparently too big to tell his trio of closest friends. He sat alone at a table on the opposite side of the bar watching the crews mingle with disinterest._

_"Hah, done!" the green haired man interrupted his thoughts, smashing the bottle triumphantly against the floor and shattering it._

_"Hey, watch where you're throwing things," Penguin lectured, almost being punctured by the stray shards. _

_"I don't think challenging him with this three times in a row was a good idea," Shachi smirked before making eye contact with the swordsman. "We might end up having to be Straw Hat babysitters."_

_"I'm no baby," Zoro slurred. "Look at your captain. He's the baby for not partying with the rest of us. Hah!"_

_"You take that back," the shorter of the Heart pirates growled._

_"Make me," he beckoned with his finger._

_"Wait! Wait wait wait!" Penguin stepped between them. "Let's just get him to-" he cut off mid sentence, his eyes widening and jaw dropping a bit when he looked over at his captain._

_Curious as to what he was gawking at, the two turned their heads back to where Law was leaning back in the booth with his eyes closed. They couldn't believe their eyes as they saw Nami approaching him with three glasses of alcohol, two of them carefully balanced in one hand. Those were full, and the third in the other hand barely had anything left. They watched her chug the rest down and put the empty cup on a table, shaking her head and taking a deep breath before continuing her approach_

_She bravely walked up to the captain, catching his attention with a word. She offered him a glass with a dangerous smile that made two of the onlookers a bit jealous. _

_"Alright, he's not a baby," Zoro admitted, snapping out of his drunken stupor, "but you all should go soon, unless you want to see something you really don't want to."_

_"What would that be?" Shachi asked half-mindedly, impressed by the way she had somehow gotten the captain to stand and took her opportunity to casually brush against him. He could almost see her purr as she did._

_"Hn. No one can resist Nami when she wants them," the swordsman's words barely registered. "At this state of drinking, she probably would let him make this a public act. She's already had more bottles of sake than me."_

_"Alright then, time to go," Penguin instantly turned, dragging the two men behind him. "I'll try to round up the crew and get them on the ship. We can't let two monsters unleash in front of everyone."_

_"But I wanna see what happens," Shachi whined, glancing back at the pair. Zoro scoffed and stumbled off, leaving them to continue to stare._

_She was now pressed against him, her arms wrapped around his neck. Law whispered something in her ear, pulling back and looking at her intensely. She gave another alluring smile and leaned forward, pressing her lips against his jawline and down to his neck, sucking just enough to leave temporary marks._

_Somehow, it seemed like none of the other party members noticed them, but the two Heart pirates couldn't look away. There stood two beautiful people, who were clearly on the verge of hooking up. It was both a shame and a blessing the others hadn't noticed. They were sure they'd all be split in half and banished from the ship for a week if they were caught watching._

_Her shoulder kisses seemed to tread on the captain's patience, and he chugged back another cup of alcohol that appeared from god-knows-where before pulling her head back roughly and kissing her. _

_The crewmates winced, figuring the rough treatment would be too much for her, but their jaws dropped as she ran her hands through his hair, dropping onto the booth they were at and pulling him down with her. They had clearly lost track of where they were, and he flipped them so she was sitting on his lap and hovering over him._

_He grabbed her hips and moved them teasingly along his, earning a wicked smile from the woman. She ground up against him a bit, her eyes locked on his._

_"Hey, Luffy! How's it going?!" a voice yelled at the other side of the bar, making the two seemingly snap out of their trance. She moved off him before her captain and crewmates saw, fixing her hair and suddenly looking shy. Law looked away, and his two friends just knew he was cursing that they were surrounded by people._

_He caught a passing waitress's attention, ordering something else for him and Nami. Once she left, the couple shyly slid back into just flirting, exchanging risky touches and heavy looks._

_Shachi and Penguin felt like they'd seen enough for the time being and snuck away, motioning for some of their crew to do the same. At this rate, they would be having sex right on a table if no one distracted them again. It was only a matter of time._

_Once most of the crew got in the sub, they went to the kitchen to pass out snacks and water to sober up before they slept. They knew partying with the Straw Hats usually meant a sour next day if they didn't take care of themselves._

_It wasn't even ten minutes before the couple came stumbling through the submarine doors, barely able to stand. The crew went to investigate the noise, surprised and embarrassed to see their captain pressing the woman against the wall to kiss her._

_They made a silent group decision to back away into the kitchen and pretend they didn't see or hear anything, but as the two finally had made it to his room, they couldn't manage to tune out the moaning, screaming and calling out of names._

_"Wow, he finally got some," Ikkaku smirked, leaning against a wall with her arms crossed. She was one of the few to not be disturbed. "I had a feeling they got along better than it seemed."_

_"It was intense to watch them in the bar," Shachi winked at her. "You should've seen them. You could split the sexual tension with a knife."_

_"I wonder if they'll be alright," Bepo cowered, not really knowing what exactly was going on. Not being a huge partier, he'd been in the navigation room to set the next day's course, only coming out once the two were shut in the captain's room._

_"I hope Luffy doesn't notice he's missing a navigator tonight," Penguin worried. The last thing he wanted was to fight the rubber man because of a misunderstanding._

_"This isn't the last we're gonna see of Nami," Uni predicted, crossing his arms. _

_Ikkaku scoffed at him. "Of course not. We're kinda part of an alliance?"_

_"That's not what I meant."_

_Another scream of ecstasy rang through the sub, making them all blush. _

_"I hope they're being smart, at least," the woman mumbled._

_"Doubt it," Shachi replied. "They slammed those drinks back pretty fast."_

_Penguin paused, thinking before he spoke. "Um… Don't they both have extremely high alcohol tolerance?"_

_"The placebo effect is a powerful thing," Clione chuckled. "I bet they'll barely even remember most of this."_

_They all unanimously decided to send the woman to sneak past the room to get cotton balls from the medical bay to make earplugs. They also made a pact to not let Law know they knew about the hook-up before splitting up to their rooms and trying to fall asleep. The muffled noises eventually ended, leaving them all a bit shaken and embarrassed on behalf of their captain._

_They also all pretended to not notice the next morning when the woman snuck out of the sub, leaving them to wonder if something more was going to happen between her and Law or not. Either way, the trio of friends noticed that for the next few days, the man seemed much happier than before, as if the weight that had been pressing down on him got lifted._

_That's when they realised that Ikkaku was right. She _had_ been his secret problem. He'd been wanting her, and he finally got her. Now they just had to see where it led. Uni was never wrong about his premonitions – one way or another, they were going to see much more of her._

_Xxxx_

"I… I can't believe this," Nami looked down at her lap. "_This _is now the most embarrassing moment of my life. Oh my god!"

"We also figured the baby was from then," Penguin added before shooting a glare at the stunned man. "I can't believe you had such little faith in her, Cap."

"Hey, I don't know what missions she might have gone on," Law crossed his arms defensively. "Accidents happen all the time."

"Exactly like this?" Shachi gestured to the baby bump, getting his arm slapped away by the surgeon of death.

"Yes."

"Can we speak in private, please?" Nami directed her request at the two other men. "Also, this never gets discussed again."

They nodded, quickly getting up and leaving with a wave.

"I'm sorry," the captain bowed his head once they were gone and had closed the door. "I didn't know the entirety of my crew knew about this."

The woman softly shook her head before placing her hand on his face, bringing it up to look at her. "Well, I started it… Either way, I don't regret it. I've liked you more than anyone in my life, and that was _before _all this. Although I am absolutely mortified there were witnesses for that much."

"You've been subjected to a lot of embarrassment today. I'll make it up to you," he promised.

She adjusted herself to lean back on his chest, trying to avoid putting her weight on his wound. "You're going to regret those words, Trafalgar. There are a _lot _of clothes and jewelry stands here."

"I know," he sighed, placing his chin on the top of her head.

They sat in silence for a while, thinking over what they've just been told. The fuzzy memories were clearing up, and they were starting to feel a bit more peaceful about their relationship, like that was the missing corner piece of the puzzle's frame.

"So much for a relaxing night," she joked. "I think my blood pressure is at an all-time high."

"Those two are staying on the ship next time," he promised. Without realising it, his hands moved to her stomach and he started to stroke his fingers comfortingly around the defined bump.

She leaned more into him with a content sigh. "Even though it will be complicated, I don't regret anything."

"Me neither."

XxXxXxXxX

Deep in a dark corner of the castle sat the disowned prince, Hiretsuna. He'd been locked to the floor with sea prism chains and cuffs, and there were guards outside his cell to watch him. Or at least, that's what they were supposed to do.

"My Lord," a guard who had just rotated in greeted the prisoner, getting on his knees to bow.

"Ah, is that Rondo?"

"Yes, sir."

"Perfect. Report."

The guard stood, bracing his arms in front of his body. "The shadow strikers still have two hundred men. Most of us have infiltrated the army, including a few spots in the palace."

The wicked man grinned, the moon illuminating his sharp teeth. "When is my trial set for?"

"Tomorrow evening, Prince Heika."

"We strike at the verdict, then."

"I will spread the word."

* * *

**Hello! I somehow made the deadline after once again staying up for like two days straight. I am currently running on red bull and hoping my heart doesn't stop lol.**

**Sorry if the warning at the beginning was a bit misleading, but I feel like since the tension seemingly came out of nowhere it might be a shock. Personally, I don't think it did come out of nowhere since like they just admitted their feelings so any restrictions they put on themselves would've lowered and of course I had to do a bath scene at some point. Originally it was actually a straight up _scene_ but editing this like I have, that would've basically came out of the blue.**

**Also, I am not really a fan of flashback explanations but these flowed better this way so hey, whatcha gonna do.**

**Shachi and Penguin just get bolder and bolder. I didn't mean to write them as like creeps or anything but if _I_ was in their shoes, I would me mesmerized as well. Law and Nami getting together would look like art in the making since they are just two beautiful people who emit raw sexuality.**

**Even though it's kind of getting close to them actually getting together, that will not be the end by any means. I still have a loooot of story to tell, and figuring out their relationship is like act 1. Also I am actually very shy to write a full scene of that because I feel like I've built up expectations for how long this is going... It may come as a surprise seeing as I have another story where that's literally all that happens lol. Oh, it also happens that I'll be doing another chapter for that since I settled on a few new inspiration songs.**

**Anyways stay safe out there an thank you very much for being with me this far.**

**Extra side note: It's a little annoying trying to spellcheck on this site and I bet some of you might be annoyed at the spelling but like in Canada we use s instead of z for a lot of words and this site does not consider! Rude.**


	11. The rebellion

Waking up in a castle felt as luxurious as you could get. Maids brought in breakfasts cooked by fine chefs. The view from the guest rooms overlooked the city, impressing the visitors with the dazzling buildings and the ocean behind them.

Nami sighed happily, looking out the window while chewing on a strawberry pastry. "I wish I could live like this every day."

"Like what?" Law inquired, taking a seat next to her with a plate of bacon, eggs and fresh fruit.

"Like a princess, of course," she stuck her tongue out at him playfully. "No worries, just relaxation and pampering…"

"You're thinking a spa day, Nami. You've witnessed more than anyone how easily life in the palace can turn to chaos. Haven't you helped what, like, three or four royal families take their kingdoms back?"

"Hm, I suppose you're right," she frowned. "Based on track record, it won't be long until someone tries to overthrow this kingdom, too."

"I'll give you three guesses on who it will be."

Her eyes widened. "You can't mean-"

"He revealed he still has followers. I'm guessing they'll try to get him out at the trial. Those kinds of guys just _love _to make it public," he rolled his eyes for emphasis. Why villains liked the dramatics, he would never understand.

"So, what's the plan then?"

"_You _will be safe on the ship while we gather forces and fight."

"Excuse me? I want to fight too!" she protested, slamming her hands down on the table.

Law narrowed his eyes. "I am _not_ letting a pregnant woman fight. It's just common sense."

She was silent, crossing her arms with a defeated glance out the window. He was right, but she hated the thought of doing absolutely nothing. "Well, what if I tend to wounds on the sub?"

The man knew there would be no way to stop her from getting involved somehow, but if she was safe on the ship… "Fine. You can be the _backup _healer if the hospitals get full." He knew that probably wouldn't happen, having seen the size of the hospitals on the island.

"Yes!" She pumped her fist, feeling triumphant.

"I guess being with Straw Hat gave you a thirst for danger," he shook his head. "Didn't you used to be a self-proclaimed chicken?"

"Hey, I'm still a chicken. I just don't like being _completely_ useless if a fight's been decided."

"Hm. I guess I understand," he shrugged, looking back out the window. Realising the time by the sun's position, he clicked his tongue. "Let's get to the Tang. We need to have a crew meeting about this situation before we get down to business with the royals."

She smiled up at him, relieved that they wouldn't just be jumping in aimlessly. Somehow, it always did work out for her captain, but actual plans were something she wished would happen more frequently on her ship.

They left the room to gather their companions from the castle, bidding a temporary goodbye to the princess and gathering back at the Polar Tang. Everyone who wasn't still bedridden had gathered in the dining hall. Nami noted only four were missing.

"Alright, let's get to it," Law announced, "Uni, any insight?"

To Nami's surprise, everyone looked over at the normally quiet man, making her wonder what Law meant.

He stood and took a deep breath. "There are around two hundred opponents," he told them. "It seems a lot of them have various types of powers."

"As in devil fruit powers?" she found herself asking.

"Don't know… I only get feelings with small snippets of key words," he explained. His eyes closed and he took another breath as everyone stared in silence, feeling tension fill the room. Once he opened them, he continued. "Only a small amount have devil fruits. The rest might just be physically strong or honed skills."

"Thank you, Uni," the captain nodded, signalling for him to sit.

"He was fed one of those dumb man-made devil fruits and it somehow gave him an extra sense," Ikkaku explained. "His feelings and predictions are rarely wrong, and they're pretty useful despite the fact we only get a small picture. I'd call it psychic but it's more like extreme intuition."

"That's pretty impressive," the straw hat admitted. She looked over at the masked man. "Tell me something: will I ever be rich?"

"Eh… Maybe? It depends on what you find valuable. I don't know specifics."

"I see."

"Back to the battle report," Law cut in, "I will be leaving two fighters and one helper to guard the sub and Nami. We'll be turning the ship into a secondary hospital if it's needed."

"Are you staying behind to heal?" asked Bepo.

"Actually, I'll be the one taking care of patients," Nami interjected, earning a stunned silence. "What? You think all I can do is bandaging?"

"When did you become so dependable," Ikkaku joked, lightening the mood.

"Hey, I've always been dependable," she defended. "I'm just adding healing to my list of many talents."

"Hah. Well, I guess I'll be staying behind as a helper. _Someone _will have to entertain you."

"I'll stay as a fighter," Jean Bart volunteered. "Won't even let them through the door."

"I'll stay as a fighter, too," Bepo raised his hand, knowing his captain would want him to directly guard the pregnant woman.

"Alright, it's settled then," Law nodded, approving the volunteers. "The rest of us will go back to the castle to plan a strategy with the royals. There's no doubt they know a fight is about to happen as well."

"Be safe," Nami waved. He smiled in reply, turning and leading the crew out. She took a deep breath and turned to the three that had stayed. "Alright, Jean Bart, you can guard the entrance and inspect people who claim they're injured. If they are, let them through. Take a snail on your way there."

The large man nodded with a firm grunt and left to guard the door.

"Bepo, man the transponder snail. We'll take one for the medical bay, too. Ikkaku, you're going to be my nurse."

"Yes ma'am," they both saluted and set off to the communication room.

Nami made her way to the operation room and waited for Ikkaku to arrive with the communicator. She knew they might not get even one patient, but determination still coursed through her veins. It would still be a few hours before the fight would even start, and knowing that, she started preparing various bags for both potential patients and the men left on board. Fixing them up more was at least _something _to do in the meantime.

Xxxxx

Hours later, thousands of citizens watched the big screens strung throughout the city, waiting for the trial of their former prince to start. There was a thick tension in the air, and only low, hushed muttering could be heard.

The Heart Pirates had been positioned with most of the major crowds, with Law being at the court arena in person to protect the royal family. The court was almost like a small colosseum, the onlookers in a high-rise ring with a clearing in the center. In the middle was a platform holding a table with three chairs. A stand was set up a few meters in front of the platform, and far behind it stood an area that made any basic criminal nervous: the gallows. It shed a bit of light on what the verdict was going to be.

Complete quiet fell over the crowd behind Law, who was sitting as close as he could to the platform, and he saw a door open into the judgement area. Completely in sync, the citizens stood and crossed their arms over their chests. It was the king and queen who emerged first, and not too far behind them was Princess Hikari. They all wore black judge robes and animalistic masks over their eyes, as if making themselves strangers rather than royalty for the subject who would be on trial. It was clear that they were the absolute power over the fate of the prince.

They took their seats to face the criminal stand, being handed scepters once they settled, and the civilians also took their seats. The king raised his towards his face. "Bring out Hiretsuna," he commanded. His voice echoed across the arena, making it evident that the scepters had mics built in.

Two guards emerged from the castle, dragging out the prince with chains on his ankles and a wood block holding his arms behind him. The crowd booed and jeered as he was let towards the center of the arena.

"Stone him!"

"Bring out the guillotine!"

"Burn him!"

The crowd started then started to chant. "Death! Death! Death! Death! Death!"

"Silence!" the king commanded, quieting the crowd. He watched with a cold, distant look as his son got set up at the stand, being forced into a classic stock made of wood. "We exiled you for your crimes against us, and you found a devil fruit to commit crimes against humanity. It is unforgivable."

The queen was the next to speak. "Hiretsuna, you will be stripped of your name of terror. From now you will be referred to as Heika, the name I gave you. You will have your list of crimes and atrocities read before the country."

"I did the world a favour," the criminal grinned, clearly not ashamed of what he'd been doing. He seemed awfully confident despite his current position.

"Quiet," the king hissed. "The list of crimes will be read by Princess Hikari."

The fire-haired woman stood, unrolling a scroll. "Unfortunately, there are too many victims to list individually. We will be doing charges by category.

"First charge: Conspiracy against the crown.

"Second charge: Sixteen counts of attempted murder.

"Third charge: Twenty-nine counts of child abuse.

"Fourth charge: Attempted assassination of the royal family.

"Fifth charge: Treason.

"Sixth charge: Seventy-eight counts of first-degree murder of adults.

"Seventh charge: At _least _sixty counts of feticide and infanticide combined.

"And the eighth charge: Unknown counts of human trafficking.

She rolled up the scroll and gave the crowd a moment to yell insults at him. They even allowed rotting fruit to be thrown at him, but somehow, he stood proudly despite the draining sea stone and the rotting produce stuck on his clothes and hair.

Law crinkled his nose in disgust. Even as a pirate, he'd never committed such despicable crimes. Hell, even Kid wouldn't cross the line to specifically involving children.

The king finally quieted the crowd again, though half-heartedly. He couldn't help but glare at the man before him. "Do you accept these charges, or would you like to attempt feigning innocence?"

"I fully accept," he smirked.

The three judges looked at each other, each nodding quietly. It was the princess who stood again, pointing her scepter at the criminal. "For the severity of these charges, you will be executed by hanging," she announced, finalizing the verdict with a slashing motion.

She gave him a hard glare when he decided to laugh. As she suspected, he had a trick up his sleeve. He flicked his wrist up behind him, holding out two fingers and evoking shadow-like figures to jump at the royal trio.

This was it.

Law stood, throwing his hand out. "Room!" The pale blue bubble quickly enveloped the arena. "Shambles!" He switched places with one of the guards for the royals, flicking his sword out to slice the attackers in half. The crowd started to run out of the arena, not wanting to get involved in a fight between the royals.

Heika's face fell slightly, realising his attack had been anticipated. His general cocky expression remained though, having faith in his subordinates. He looked to his left suddenly, feeling his shackles being pried apart. As soon as he registered one of his men at his side, his disappearance and a 'thud' on the ground was the telling sign that his attempted saving was thwarted.

The loyalty split between the guards was revealed quickly, and the look of hurt and betrayal on Hikari's face was hard to miss. There had been ten guards in the clearing. Only two stood with them, clearly shocked by the treason as well.

The princess ripped her mask off and took out two of her fans that had been hiding under her robes. Law moved out of the way, sensing she was about to unleash some anger. He called in his power, knowing full well that now that the surprise was over, the royals could handle themselves _very_ well. Particularly the enraged princess. He was now just there for assistance.

He was not disappointed as she flung her fans forward with a heavy force, sending wind swirling directly at their foes. It swept half of them up, sending them flying into the chairs and knocking them unconscious.

Law activated his room and teleported over to them. He quickly split them in half and separated their parts so they couldn't reconnect easily once they woke up. A sense of adrenaline pumped through him as two guards rushed at him and he easily dodged, dropping his bubble and fighting normally with his sword. He felt like he hadn't fought regularly in ages, other than the unexpected battle with the disgraced prince.

This was almost _fun._

The loyal guards and the royal family watched in amazement as the pirate let his instincts take over, glad he was on their side. It was only him and Heika standing in the middle of the arena now, the criminal almost cowering in fear.

Xxx

Back in the city, the Heart pirates weren't having as much of an easy time as their captain. Trying to take down rogue guards without harming the scrambling civilians was chaotic, and the opponents felt no such obligation to leave their countrymen unharmed.

A majority of them did get taken down quite easily and were immediately chained up and dragged away by brave groups of the residents, but quite a few of the guards had devil fruit powers, making them more formidable. They had to be led away to minimize the damage and casualties.

Slowly, they drew them away from the city, being on the defense until the coast was clear. There were only a handful compared to the non-powered guards, who were mostly thinned out by now. Penguin, who had been appointed the leader of the squad, did a quick head count.

Once they reached the beach, he called out to his crewmates. "There are three of them for each of us. Get the special weapons ready!"

The Hearts disengaged from the battle by jumping back a few feet. It only took them a second to simultaneously take out anti-devil fruit weapons. Upon seeing said weapons, the guards slowed to a stop, clearly recognizing the dull grey of the sea stone. One of the larger men hesitantly stepped forward. "H-how do you have so much of that?"

"We've got allies in certain places," Penguin smirked. "It levels the playing field, so show us what you've got!"

The pirates behind him shouted a battle cry and rushed forward, switching to the offence. The leader himself pulled out his special-made sword from Wano and charged ahead with a cry of his own.

Xxx

Nami hummed as she finished tending to the bedridden pirates' wounds. "I'm no Law, but I think you guys might be able to at least start walking around again tomorrow," she told them with a smile.

"Thank you Nurse Nami," they mumbled.

She puffed her cheeks and put her hand on her hips. "Come on, I'm not even wearing the uniform today."

"Yes, but you'll always be Nurse Nami in their hearts," Ikkaku teased from the doorway, holding her hands over her heart.

The navigator rolled her eyes and walked out, heading back to the medical bay with the engineer following close behind. After sorting the bags again, she sat down on her personal chair with a sigh. "I'm so bored."

"The feed cut off for the execution once everyone started fighting. Aren't you supposed to be worried for your _lover_?"

Nami threw her a playful glare. "Are you done teasing me yet?"

"I've still got your crew, your money obsession and your friend choices to roast," the raven listed.

"Hey. _You're _one of my friends."

"My point exactly."

She sighed again and leaned back in the chair. "I would be worried, but Law already beat him once. I'm sure it will be no problem, especially with more people fighting alongside him."

"I'm kind of worried about everyone else," Ikkaku admitted. "Uni said there are so many guards… I know we're a strong group, but sometimes you just can't beat the numbers."

"I'm sure they will," Nami assured. "And if not, I'll just have to go out there and beat them myself."

"Law would kill us all if anything happened to you."

"Alright, I _won't _do that. Only for your sake," she winked.

They jolted out of their seats at the sound of their small snail ringing. Ikkaku was closest, so she answered. "Hello?"

"Ikkaku, it's Bepo!" the snail said, gaining his features. "Law called. Hiretsuna escaped again and is likely heading this way. We all have to be on guard, especially with our minds."

"Got it. Did you tell everyone else already?"

"Yes. They are sending someone to help us just in case."

"I'm going to hide Nami. You help Jean-Bart guard the ship," she ordered.

"'Aye."

The call ended. Ikkaku looked over to see if Nami had heard, but by the panicked look on her face, she didn't even need to ask. "Let's go," she held her hand out. "There's a good hiding place that only the captain and I know about."

"Well _that _doesn't sound suspicious," she tried to joke, but the quiver in her voice was telling enough for how worried she was. "I-I don't know why I'm worried. _I_ finished the fight yesterday…"

"Let's go," she coaxed again, softer this time. She helped her off the bed and cracked open the door to make sure no one was in the hall before leading her to the entrance of the lower level. They quietly made their way past the training room, giving no time for Nami to even look around before she was ushered through another door.

"I've been here almost four months and I never even thought to wonder where the engine room was," she admitted, staring into the room filled with big and loud machinery.

"Yep, this is my home away from home… Away from home," the engineer said proudly. "These are my babies. They all have names, but we don't have time for that right now."

She led her to the very back where two of the biggest machines were. Going ahead and feeling around, she let out a quiet 'ah hah!' as a heavy click could be heard. The machines separated a little bit, revealing they narrowed out in the back. Enough for a person to fit in there…

"I bet you see where I'm going with this," she gestured. "The metal isn't very warm, it isn't too loud, and you could fit in there even when I close the front off."

With a sigh, the woman trudged in there. She turned at the back, leaning against the wall. "Can I at least have a communicator?"

"Of course," Ikkaku handed hers to her. "We'll let you know once everything's okay again. Press here-" she pointed to a certain spot on the metal enclosure "-to open it up. Don't do it unless you _really _have to."

The machines started to squeeze together again, leaving Nami in the darkness. She slid down the wall and ended up curled into a tight ball, feeling more claustrophobic than she'd ever felt in her life. Her breathing was sporadic, and she tried to even it out. It wasn't as if there was a lack of oxygen; there was an opening at the very top. Her eyes soon adjusted to the small amount of light it was giving her as well.

_'How can Ikkaku work like this?' _she thought to the tight spaces she'd spotted on her way in that no doubt had to be worked in. _'I could never be an engineer.'_

Her thoughts drifted to the battle outside. She had no idea what was going on, but did she ever? Her own captain often separated from them on their journeys, coming back with powerful allies, or worse, powerful enemies on his tail. This time, though, she was afraid. Although she'd gained haki, she didn't know how to control it and if using it could hurt her baby, who was already in danger. It was a mess, and she felt useless.

She had faith in Law and his crew, but she couldn't help thinking. How far would they go to protect her?

Xxxxxxx

Law hissed inwardly as he tried to chase Heika down.

When he'd attacked in the arena, the criminal somehow had enough strength left to angle himself so the sword would slice through the wood block holding his arms behind him. He then slipped a key out from beneath his shirt, no doubt given to him by one of the treacherous guards, and undid his shackles. Right when they came off, he slipped into the shadows, narrowly avoiding another attack and clearing himself of the rotten fruits that had covered him.

Since he'd been chained up with the sea prism for a long amount of time, it seemed his powers had to be rested, as Law saw him manifest back into his human form for brief seconds before rejoining the shadows. The captain had pulled out his communicator to alert Bepo and Penguin of the oncoming threat before running after him.

Tracking a shadow was easier than he'd thought. It was the catching up to him that was the hard part, since he got such a great head start. If there was a silver lining to this, it was that his crew now knew of his manipulation techniques and could guard against it, though he had to wonder why he didn't attempt it on his family.

The direction he was unmistakably heading made it obvious - he had unfinished business. Law figured it was his first time being unsuccessful, as men like him usually were too conceited to pick logic over revenge. Not that he _wanted_ anything to happen to the royal family.

He cursed as he noticed the time in the shadows was getting longer, which meant the powers were returning to normal. At least the guards he'd left on the ship were strong enough to stall him at the very least.

As he ran out of the city, he was pleased to find his men clearly winning in a fight against Heika's small army. There were a lot of bodies on the ground, and none of them belonged to the Hearts. Penguin spotted him from his one-on-one battle with the biggest opponent there and called back for Shachi to help the captain.

The man finished off his opponent and ran to catch up with Law, not needing an explanation. The context clues were enough for him to figure it out.

Once they got to the ship, they saw Jean-Bart and Bepo fighting the criminal at the doors, but Heika easily slipped through them when they both went to hit him, hitting each other instead. It would've been comical if not for the dire situation.

"Sorry," Bepo called before running inside to continue fighting.

"It's fine," Jean-Bart replied, following him in.

Law and Shachi ran in and sped past them, trying to set up a block. The redhead was glad to still have a sea prism weapon, but it was risky to use so close to his captain.

"Heh, you've got me surrounded," Heika smirked.

"You don't seem to understand when you're in deadly situations," Law replied curtly, unsheathing his sword. "There's no way we're letting you out alive. You've already been sentenced to death."

He only chuckled in reply. "I wouldn't kill me if I were you. Not if you want information on a certain pretty little slave."

His grip tightened on his sword as he clicked his tongue in annoyance. "You're bluffing."

"Maybe, maybe not. I'm not in a position to be lying, now am I?"

"Your position is the perfect time to be lying!" Shachi countered. "You're dead either way, so tell us where she is."

"Hm," Heika put his finger on his chin, pretending to think about it. "How about you tell me where your precious navigator is? It's a fair trade, you know."

"Absolutely not!" Law slid his sword out angrily, ready to attack.

"Wait!" Ikkaku ran out from around the corner with a furious look on her face and a knife in her hand. She barged past her captain and crewmate to hold the knife up to their enemy's throat. "_Where is she?"_

"Ikkaku, wait," Bepo held up his paws.

"No! I'm tired of waiting for answers!" she yelled, her eyes filling with tears. "But I refuse to give up Nami too! Tell me where she is. _NOW_!"

"Hm… No."

She bared her teeth and went to slice his throat. As her blade approached, she suddenly stopped and fell to the floor. Her eyes began to turn pure white, signaling he was trying to take over her body.

The four moved to attack, but Heika only laughed and fell into her shadow. She jolted up and startled her crew, but it was soon obvious that she was fully possessed as her movements to stand seemed unnatural.

"He's overtaken her shadow," Law observed. "We can't attack her recklessly. Bepo, use your electro to shock him out!"

"On it!" the mink lunged forward and aimed a paw crackling with electricity at her, but she dodged easily, sinking low and sliding under her captain.

"Room!" he called. The bubble formed around the hall, but she quickly ran out of its reach before he could do anything. "Damnit," he spat. His energy was already depleted a bit from the fight with him yesterday and the event earlier. He knew Heika was fast and able to dodge his attacks even inside his space, and now he was using his best engineer, so if he expanded his room to the entire submarine it wasn't an automatic win and he might not have energy left to fight with.

There was some hope, though. Assuming the criminal was able to read her thoughts and knew where Nami was hiding, he would have to go past a certain containment point. "Everyone hold on," he warned as he expanded the room just enough to teleport them just outside the sea prism prison.

Ikkaku was just running down the stairs, almost falling down them when she stopped suddenly. Law had put Shachi at the top, Bepo and Jean-Bart in front of the prison door, and himself next to the training room to block the way.

"You're not getting out of this one," Shachi hissed as he lunged down the stairs with his sword's back ready to attack. All he had to do was touch her body with it.

"I think otherwise," she replied. Her voice sounded warped, catching the others off guard. She took the opportunity to jump down the rest of the stairs. "Shadow spear!" she shouted, flinging her arms out at the crew. Thin shadow spikes came out of the ground and launched towards them. The three dodged while Law deflected it with his sword.

Bepo and Jean-Bart went to attack, locking in hand-to-hand combat with her long enough to give Law the opportunity to activate and deactivate his room again. When he re-focused on the fight, his two right-minded subordinates were seemingly outmatched.

They tried to push her into the sea prism chamber but at the last second, she ducked and slid away, calling the shadows to trap them in and locking the door.

She turned to the captain with a smug smirk on her face. "What's this? Not going to use your powers on me?" she taunted, slowly walking forward. She ran a hand down her cheek, letting it brush down her neck and on her chest. "Can't hurt your pretty little engineer, huh?"

He grimaced, but chose not to comment on the disturbing insinuation. "If you're so strong, fight me yourself."

"I may be powerful, but I'm not _stupid,_" she rolled her eyes. "Even if I would have an advantage in either form, it's just so much better to torture my victims. Imagining your faces when one of your trusted friends kills your child and tortures your girlfriend is exactly the thing I like the most."

"Like hell I'm going to let you do that," Law spat, holding out his hand. "We'll just have to eject you by force."

Ikkaku fell to the ground again, screaming this time as the possession ended, revealing Shachi standing behind her. "Seems you forgot about me," he said lowly, removing the flat end of his sword from her back and stabbing it into the shadow beneath her, forcing Heika to materialize again.

The captain tried to send out his room again, but as the bubble materialised in his hand, he could feel his energy draining to critical levels. He cancelled it and took his sword out instead. It was time to finish this. He swung it down and dragged it along the man's neck to cut off his head. The sooner it was finished, the better.

To their annoyance, the figure turned black and disintegrated, revealing it was a shadow clone. Law spun around and hissed when he saw the real man on the other side of the engine room, pressing a secret panel to open the space between the machines.

"No!" Law yelled, pushing past his fatigue and sending out his power over the room despite his energy store protesting enough for it to be physically painful. Upon seeing Nami, he switched their places. As he materialised in the place she'd been hiding, he felt something sharp hit his chest. Heika's expression was a mix of surprise and smugness as he twisted the blade deeper.

"It doesn't matter who I kill first," he admitted. "Even the strongest pirates have vulnerable hearts."

It was Law's turn to grin despite the pain. "Don't be so sure."

The criminal looked more and more upset as he tried to push the knife deeper to no avail, having lost the initial momentum that let it pierce that deep in the first place. He was distracted enough to forget about his surroundings again, and his eyes widened in horror when he heard someone shout from behind him.

"Ice storm tempo!"

He turned around, but it was too late. His movements slowed to a full stop and his skin turned a whitish blue. His face was now stuck in the horror-stricken expression. A perfect sight, Law decided.

He removed the man's freezing hand off the knife, leaving the weapon in his chest for now. It was safer this way until he had access to his medical supplies to stop the immense bleeding that would start. Heart or not, there were many blood vessels in the area and only adrenaline kept him standing after overexerting his energy store. He knew he didn't have much time until the intense pain would _really _kick in, so he started barking orders at the crew.

"Bepo, call an emergency doctor for me and someone to take this criminal," he ordered right when the mink and Jean-Bart stepped out of the prison. He nodded firmly and ran up the stairs. "Shachi, move Heika into the sea stone cage until someone comes to collect him. Jean-Bart, take me and Ikkaku to the infirmary. Nami," he looked over at her, noting her worried face, "you'll have to stop the bleeding and wait for the doctors to come. If they take too long, go ahead and do stitches."

"Are you sure?" she asked, wide-eyed. They didn't have much time to spare, but she was shocked he wanted _her _to stabilize him. Considering the situation, though, it made sense. Jean-Bart and Bepo's hands were too big for something like this, Ikkaku was out, and Shachi had the only remaining sea stone weapon on the ship.

"Use anesthesia this time," he permitted before clutching around the knife where a sharp pain started to spread from. He slid down the wall with his teeth clenching together, willing his vision to stay sharp.

Jean-Bart picked him up gently, as well as Ikkaku, and ran to the infirmary with Nami following close behind. The last thing the captain registered was a cold sterilizing cloth wiping around the wound and a needle entering the top of his chest, releasing one more stinging sensation before he completely lost consciousness.

X

Nami worked tirelessly on the unconscious doctor. _'How ironic,'_ she thought as she pressed a gauze firmly against the now-open wound, having removed the knife. _'My stubbornness from that one fight saved his life.'_ She shuddered at the thought of what might've happened if she _hadn't _reacted badly to his reflexes seemingly forever ago. Tears threatened to spill at the thought of him dying in her place, but she blinked them away to focus on treatment. She tried to ignore how much blood was coming out and coating her gloved hands.

The doctors were taking too long for her liking, but she reasoned a fight might've still been going on at the beach. Either way, the blood had eventually stopped gushing as much and she made the executive decision to stitch him up after clearing the wound with saline. It was as if the last two days were training her solely for this ultimate test.

Having been through his medical books, she knew the amount of blood lost was _not _a safe amount, and he needed to be hooked up to a donor bag as soon as possible, otherwise he was still at risk. She leafed through his personal file, which she found easily since his organisation was impeccable, and figured out his blood type.

She knew there was a cabinet full of different types and chose the correct one, hooking it up to an IV and hanging it off a stand. Somehow, the needle found a vein in his arm without difficulty and she breathed a sigh of relief when everything was said and done. All there was left for her to do now was watch and wait.

The doctors eventually arrived and commended her for her work. They hooked him up properly to a blood pressure monitor to make sure everything was normal. It was a bit off, but they weren't too worried considering the circumstances.

While they were there, she got them to check on Ikkaku as well only to get the news that nothing physical was wrong with her; she was unconscious because of either shock or mental trauma, and there was no way of determining when she would reawaken.

At the same time, the _loyal _royal guards arrived to collect the disowned prince. He was still set for execution, but after all the trouble he'd caused for the Hearts and Nami, the royal family was willing to wait until they all could see it in person. The medical staff offered to move the two pirates to their hospital on gurneys until they woke up, confirming the battles outside had finished and the rebels were either dead or imprisoned. Nami agreed, knowing the sooner they were awake for the execution, the sooner they could leave and put this whole situation behind them.

All the fighters had been checked on in the main hospital, most luckily only getting a few cuts and bruises. Uni ended up with a dislocated shoulder, and Penguin with a few broken fingers, but Nami was pleased to hear the rebellious soldiers were easily taken down. They were only part of that faction because of how weak they were. Apparently, Heika had either easily brainwashed the weak-minded or promised strength with cheap devil fruits off the black market.

Upon hearing that last part of their report, Nami scoffed and rolled her eyes. _Cheap _fruits from the black market? Of course they were duds, probably complete fakes made by someone with a _real _fruit with a powerful ability.

After a few hours of waiting in Law's hospital room, she perked up from her magazine at the sound of the bed creaking. "Welcome back," she said softly as she threw the reading material to the side. She stood and hurriedly walked to him to make sure he felt alright.

He looked around and blinked a few times before finally realising where he was. "Is everything dealt with?" he asked, his voice husky from his dry throat. Hearing it, she passed him a small cup of water that had been brought to a nearby stand.

"They're just waiting for us to oversee the execution," she nodded. "How are you feeling?"

He took small sips of the water, knowing full well he shouldn't be chugging anything after the treatments he'd gotten. Once the cup was empty, he groaned on his way back to leaning back on the raised bed. "Very sore. There's been too much fighting recently and my energy hasn't been able to catch up."

"I'm glad you're alive, though," she smiled, gently taking hold of his free hand. "The doctors _did _take forever so I had to stitch you up myself."

He looked down as much as he could but winced at the movement. "Whatever it looks like, I'm glad it worked," he sighed with relief, closing his eyes. "I haven't been this injured in a long time."

"You wouldn't have been injured at all if I wasn't just a useless target," she frowned, squeezing his hand tighter. "You saved my life."

"Clearly, you're not useless," he gestured weakly to his chest. "You were also able to stop him-"

"I nearly had a heart attack when my climatact suddenly appeared in my hands," she interrupted with a glare.

"But you didn't," he smirked. "I knew you would probably end up dealing the final blow again. I just figured it was better for the baby if it was from your weapon instead of uncontrolled haki."

She shook her head in disbelief. "Whatever. You got seriously injured and I came out fine so thanks again."

He brought her hand up to his face and kissed the top of it. "You're welcome."

A doctor soon came in to check on them, glad to see Law awake. She informed them on the situations with the rest of his crew, noting that Ikkaku had waken an hour before and was _very _eager to talk to him as soon as she could.

Law agreed to see her, and she soon entered the room, fidgeting with her fingers. "What's going on?" he asked, concerned.

She looked at him, seriousness taking over her normally calm features. "I know who took Rochelle."

**Xxxxx**

**Hello! For once I'm updating with enough sleep. I haven't stayed up all night to finish this off! Aren't you proud?**

**The situation with Hiretsuna's name might be confusing. The people who knew him from before or witnessed the trial call him by his lowly prince name, Heika. Hiretsuna was only his chosen name to strike fear in his targets. It will still kind of switch back and forth depending on who knows, and hopefully I won't make any mistakes with it… Why did I do this in the first place? No idea. Guess I thought it was cool :p**

**Also, sorry for those who are following me and keep getting spammed with notifications of other stories. I recently got back into Soul Eater and ship Kid and Maka so hard, and they're easier to write than Law and Nami. I don't have to try to be smart so the one-shots usually only take me a few days to be satisfied with. **

**I am in the process of updating Paralyzer, I swear! I have some written down, it's just hard to put my vision into words. This quarantine is taking away my vocabulary apparently.**

**Please stay safe out there everyone!**


	12. For real this time

Law snapped up, wincing at the sharp pain from his sudden movement. "What!?"

"I _said_, I know who took Rochelle," Ikkaku repeated.

"How?" asked Nami. The last she'd heard about her was the fact she'd been bought at a slave auction.

The brunette took a seat in the remaining empty chair. "Heika knows who she got sold to. When he possessed me and accessed my memories to find you, I returned the favour," she explained with a sly grin before reverting back to the previous serious demeanor. "Because of her devil fruit, she's been bought by a group of ex-marines operating as slave traders."

The pregnant woman gasped. "Do you know if they're powerful?"

"I don't," she answered. "It seems they dealt with him often for slave trading."

Law grit his teeth and balled his fists in anger. "Despicable," he hissed. He turned to the women with a new determined look. "It's more of a lead than we've ever had. Let's bring it up with the royals tomorrow before we leave. They might know a little more."

"Why not tonight?!" Ikkaku protested.

"It's really late," Nami spoke softly, taking her hand for gentle support, "and Law's in no state to be walking around yet. I'm surprised even you seem fine, considering that cracked rib and possible head trauma."

"This is nothing! I have heavy machine parts fall on me every so often."

"We've been patient this long. We can wait another day," he assured, making the engineer sigh and lower her head in defeat.

"Alright."

The healed Heart pirates had been invited to stay the night in the palace, and on Law's orders, the girls left him to the care of the hospital and joined them. The extravagant room Nami had shared the night before seemed lackluster without him. The brunette sensed her loneliness and offered to stay with her, only to get encouraged to go sleep with Hikari with a small forced smile. The engineer knew better than to protest this late at night and left to find her friend.

After closing the door, Nami somberly walked over to the bed and dropped on her back with a huff. The events of the day played through her head. Once the hospital had taken over Law's care, she cried for _hours _over his unconscious form. It was because of her that he'd been hurt so badly. It was because of her that he'd used all that energy in the first place. If she wasn't on board, they would've gotten him easily without much trouble.

But no, she just _had _to be the weakness of the crew. Of _Law_. If she'd never said anything about the baby's lineage, he would've come up with some other way to deal with Hiretsuna rather than jumping in the way of his weapon. The scene kept replaying in her head, as well as the gut-wrenching horror of having his blood on her hands.

She was used to battle by now. Casualties rarely happened, but they still did, no matter how much the person was cared about. No matter how much people could fight for them. Once again, her thoughts travelled to the situation with Ace. She'd reasoned not telling Law about the baby in case her son ended up with the same fate, but here he was in a similar scenario.

"Damn protective men," she cursed quietly. Why did they always have to _literally _jump in and save the day?

Still, she couldn't help but be grateful. She was positive Law would've been able to save her if she'd been hurt, but he loved her enough to take the hit in her place. Tears started to sting her eyes as she tried to hold them back. Why did love always lead to pain? History did nothing but repeat itself, and she thought they would be strong enough to break the bitter cycle once her child was born. Now, she wasn't so sure.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

"Ex-marine slave traders?"

The king and queen looked at each other quizzingly before facing the trio of pirates. "I'm sorry, but I haven't heard anything specific. All I know is it's a fairly common practise other than piracy that marines turn to after they quit," the queen revealed with a troubled expression.

"I've tracked a few who've been in contact with Heika," Hikari interjected. "I can get a list, but it's quite a stretch."

"I would suggest talking to him, but there's no use," the king frowned. "He's always been stubborn and secretive."

"A list is better than nothing," Ikkaku replied sharply.

"We've got enough resources to check them all out in a reasonable amount of time," added Law. "I can also call in a few favours."

"We can always check out a few of them, too," the princess volunteered. "Since Heika will be dealt with, it gives me something else to focus on."

Nami felt it was best to not speak up since she wasn't directly involved. Instead, she just ate her plate of breakfast and continued to listen. That morning, she'd woken up to a note on her door telling her to go to the dining hall at a precise time, and was surprised to find the royal family already there, as well as the two Heart pirates.

Until now, they'd engaged in polite chitchat. The queen had asked about her pregnancy and gave some encouraging tips and funny stories about her daughter, making her seem less like the ruler of a rich kingdom and a lot easier to get along with. Especially when Hikari's face nearly matched the colour of her hair with a mix of anger and embarrassment on a story that involved a silly toddler and a poor, wet cat.

She continued to listen as they discussed what to do about finding the missing woman, as well as when they would execute the treacherous prince. Her focus wavered as the conversation went on. The painting behind the queen was suddenly remarkably interesting. It was a monochrome portrait of a stoic woman who seemed to have thick cables coming out of her head like hair. An odd feeling washed over her and the voices around her started to fade as she felt more and more drawn in.

Suddenly, she felt something weird in her stomach. A small fluttering feeling that took her out of her trance. Upon realising what it must've been, she jumped up in surprise, interrupting the conversation.

Law noticed the bewildered look on her face first. "What's wrong?"

"I… I think he kicked," she announced in a whisper, turning to him. "Isn't it too early for him to be kicking?"

"It was an amazing feat we even determined his gender so early," he replied. "I think he might just be a fast developer."

"Being a part of both of you, we can assume he's an overachiever," Ikkaku teased. "Ready to come out and kick ass."

It dawned on her she'd rudely interrupted whatever conversation was going on. She timidly sat down, mumbling an apology. The queen forgave her with a chuckle, relating to how excited she'd felt with every pregnancy development. The resumed conversation revealed they'd been talking about the execution. They were still going to make it public, as the citizens deserved to witness the fall of one of their greatest terrors. It was quite the switch of conversation.

The time was set to midday and Law would be sent personally to make sure nothing had been slipped to him like last time and escort him out to the gallows. In the meantime, they dispersed. The Hearts went to the ship to make sure everything was alright there since the more severely injured from their first fight were still on board, left in the care of Shachi.

Nami was personally asked to stay behind by Hikari and couldn't refuse her request. They ended up wandering through a large garden behind the palace. "So. You and Law, huh?" the princess started, sending her a teasing smile.

"What about us?" she asked, cocking her head to the side. Clearly, they were together, but what did that matter to her?

Hikari looked forward again, keeping their walking pace slow and relaxing. "Nothing in particular," she hummed. "I'm just glad to see him so content. It's been a while since I've seen him, and last time he still looked as if he had a stick up his ass."

She nearly choked at the comment, both in amusement and surprise at the blunt language. "Yeah, he's still like that sometimes," she admitted. "My captain's worn him down a lot, though, so he seems more exasperated than cocky nowadays."

"He's always been difficult to read. I've known him nearly a decade and I can still only identify obvious things. Which is why I was surprised to notice his happiness." They stopped in front of a large fountain, and she guided the navigator to sit with her on the edge. "I suppose I should thank you."

"What for?"

"Ikkaku's kind of like my little sister, and she sees him as a brother-figure, which makes him somewhat my brother in a way," she mused. "You're making my brother happy, so thank you."

"You're… Welcome?" Nami replied. She sort of understood what she meant – she saw Luffy as a weird brother type and therefore Ace was an extension, though she didn't feel quite as strongly as Hikari seemed to.

"If there's anything I can do to help in your personal matters, please let me know. I would be happy to assist," she offered with a genuinely thankful smile. "Now, let's get down to serious business."

"What do you mean?"

Hikari shuffled closer to her, towering over her as she leaned in. "I want to know _everything _about the Straw Hats! I only know bits and pieces from the news and Ikkaku's phone calls, but tell me the juicy stuff! Like, were you and Robin ever an item?"

"N-no, we just share a bed," she admitted.

The princess squealed, clenching her fists together and wiggling her body around excitedly. Her whole demeanor had changed to complete fangirl, but she was thankfully tamer than their number one fanboy with the bright green mohawk. "Does she like anyone?"

"Yes, but I can't say who," she revealed, thinking of the unspoken relationship between the historian and the ship hand.

"Are Zoro and Sanji secretly dating?!"

Nami laughed. "If they were, it would be a secret to me, too. They can barely go a day without fighting."

"Love and hate are only separated by a thin line," she winked.

"Are you only interested in the romance gossip?"

"Maybe."

"We're like a close family so it would be a bit weird for most of us to develop relationships," Nami explained. "Robin and her interest are the only ones that _might _make it work, but the rest of us are like siblings."

The princess calmed a little, shrinking back to her regular, elegant form. "Oh. I see."

Sensing her disappointment, the navigator tried to bring up a topic she might be more interested in. "If you want, we can discuss the baby," she suggested. "I don't get to really talk often about him without some feeling of expectations."

"How do you mean?"

"Like, I want to think about baby names and have a group of girlfriends to do a baby shower and all that crap," she rolled her eyes. "It sounds stupid, but when I was younger and thought about becoming a mother, it was a normal life with normal friends and a normal husband. Not that I want to get married right now or anything."

"You're under a lot of pressure and have wild pregnancy hormones. If you feel you need something more normal to hold it all together, you should at least tell Law about it," she advised. "Otherwise, you might break down. Besides, baby names are a normal thing for couples to talk about, and I'm sure everyone will spoil you enough for it to be considered a really long baby shower."

"I suppose," Nami sighed, dipping her fingers into the fountain. "I just get so nervous thinking about the future. Law and I have agreed we don't necessarily want to raise him on the ships. I can't stay cooped up in a submarine for long, and my own ship is a major target. We discussed maybe going to a certain island, but I'm having trouble deciding if I'm able to leave my crew even if they put me in danger."

The princess patted her shoulder sympathetically. "It's a hard decision, but you still have a while to decide. Even when he's born, you don't necessarily have to jump straight into anything. Just do what feels right."

"That's the problem," Nami scowled, clenching her fist. "I'm selfish."

"Oh?"

"Robin suggested the island, which is the only reason I brought it up. I can't even _stand _the thought of staying on Law's claustrophobia-inducing ship longer than necessary," she grit her teeth. "I want to stay with my crew. They're my family, and I don't know what I'd do without them."

Hikari smiled softly and shook her head. "I don't think you're selfish."

"Law said he'd go with me wherever I choose. He's already paid his dues on my ship, and like I said, it's a major target which is unsafe for the baby."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. The only sounds were of the water streaming out of the fountain, the wind lightly rustling the hedges and trees, and birds chirping in the distance. The princess felt a little sorry for the poor navigator for having to have so many burdens, and decided to hint at a completely different idea than had been presented.

"Has anyone told you details about Rochelle?"

"Not really," she replied. "All I know is what she looks like, that she's Ikkaku's girlfriend, and that she got sold at a human auction because of her beauty and devil fruit."

Hikari took a deep breath and stretched her arms up. "I'll give you a brief history then, knowing Ikkini's a little reluctant to talk about her and Law doesn't believe it's any of his business."

"Okay?"

She leaned back, not caring that her fiery hair was sinking beneath the surface of the water as she looked at the sky. "Once upon a time, there was an abandoned child that washed up on our shores. The king and queen were generous and took her in as she was unlikely to get a home out of the local orphanage due to her age. The girl was cared for by the maids and eventually met the princess and her personal advisor, who was too young at the time to advise anything except what pranks she should play on the staff, and her edgy twin brother who was always shut up in his room." She stopped and chuckled at the memories. Back when things were simple and her brother was only a little rough around the edges but still beloved. She honestly had no idea what made him snap, and she frowned at the knowledge that she would never get the answer.

Nami understood the sudden silence. It was so much simpler remembering the good times of childhood. When there wasn't some villain coming too early in their lives. When she was free to be an innocent kid, laughing and playing with her sister and mother.

Hikari continued. "The three girls grew extraordinarily close. As the princess discovered her love for her citizens, especially the beautiful women, the other two discovered their love for each other. Knowing they would only give the princess a scandalous reputation by staying by her side, they left the palace together and focused on their interests, still remaining friends with her from a distance. Ikkaku became a mechanic, as she'd always had a passion for machinery. Rochelle became a model."

"How did she get her devil fruit?" the navigator was curious. Modelling didn't have a direct tie to those types of things.

The princess frowned, looking down. "The prince eventually committed treason and attempted to kill us. While he and I were locked in battle, a maid ran to the city and informed them what was going on. Rochelle stole a devil fruit from her boss, not knowing what it did until she ate it. She'd hoped for some extreme power that could rid us of Heika, but it turned out to be visual transformative powers."

"Like illusions?"

"A little stronger, but essentially, yes," she nodded. "By the time they made it to the castle, we had him locked down and sentenced to exile. Rochelle was upset she wasn't able to help, and even more so that she'd given up her freedom to swim for seemingly nothing, so she ended up determined to master swordsmanship. In her opinion, it was the most elegant way to fight. Around the time she'd made up her mind, the Heart pirates washed up on our shores to express interest on exchanging some scientific knowledge and the possibility of doing some black-market trading."

Nami gasped. "He did _not_."

"He sure did. We're a country known to not give a damn about the world government, and he wanted an ally through trades. Instead of black-market dealings, we gave him some knowledge with the deal that he would teach Rochelle swordsmanship and take on Ikkaku as an engineer. He was more than happy to."

"Ikkaku told me you were mad when Rochelle got captured and sold," she revealed.

The princess clenched her fists. "He should've kept a better eye on them both, especially since she was his student. I was told she and Ikkaku went on a date and were knocked out somewhere. Law was too occupied with some underground trade to notice. By the time he realised they hadn't gotten back yet, it was too late. He found Ikkaku wounded and unconscious on the other side of the island. I was _pissed_."

The pieces finally clicked together, and Nami was the one to reassure her now. "We'll find her now that we have some intel."

Hikari calmed a little, gaining a small, sad smile. "Yeah." She shook her head and turned back to her cheery self. "Anyways, the reason I'm telling you all of this _other _than to fill you in…" she paused for dramatic effect, making the pregnant woman shoot her an anticipating look. "If you find her, that devil fruit ability could be very useful."

"How do you mean?"

"Well, what's your primary fear about staying with your crew?" she asked, swirling a half-damp strand of hair around her finger playfully.

"We're a huge target and end up in danger as soon as we're recognised," she stopped, suddenly understanding what she was implying. "No. We can't steal three Hearts."

"Who said anything about stealing?" she winked. "The illusions last as long as she wants them to. I'm sure with their captain on a different ship, the Hearts won't be too far behind."

"That's still so risky," Nami sighed. "But… I suppose it's an option. Thanks for letting me in on it, though. I'll think about it."

"I'm sure she wouldn't hesitate to help you out," she assured. "She'd do anything for a pretty face."

"I hope that's a joke," the navigator replied with a small giggle.

The princess hopped off the fountain and wrung out the ends of her hair. "Perhaps." She motioned for Nami to follow her further through the garden. "Anyways, did you want to discuss baby names?"

She shook her head. "I guess not. I can't bring myself to start that part without Law." She stopped suddenly and hunched over, feeling more movement. "First day moving and he's already energetic…"

"That's good, though. At least you know he's fairly healthy just by that," Hikari beamed.

"I bet this means my insides are going to be a punching bag for the next few months," she rolled her eyes. "My organs are sure gonna take a beating."

The princess could only laugh as she watched the pirate rub her stomach, clearly silently lecturing him to calm down. "Maybe you should name him Arai."

"It's a nice name, but I don't think so."

Nami looked up at the sky, noting the sun was getting pretty high. "Do you think we should go back? We've been out here a while."

"I suppose," Hikari sighed dramatically, draping her arm over her head. "I was hoping to get to spend more time with you and get some juicy details about Law."

"I don't have anything super interesting on him anyways, sadly," she shrugged.

They turned around and headed back to the palace where the rest of the Heart pirates were gathered. Nami was glad to see the four bedridden men were back on their feet. The king was there as well, instructing a guard to lead the captain to the dungeons. Once they'd left, the royal told the others to go to the colosseum. Hikari regretfully let her temporary companion go with the group as she had to enter through a different door. Nami and Ikkaku waved and smiled encouragingly before they moved out with the rest of the small crowd.

Once they were outside, the navigator thought of all the things she'd been told. She glanced over at Ikkaku but couldn't bring herself to mention it. The current situation was already getting tense again, and she didn't want her to spiral thinking more about her lost girlfriend. Instead, she buried the knowledge and focused on the ex-prince finally getting his karma.

When they took their seats at the very front, the citizens started cautiously piling in again, having seen and heard about the rescheduled execution. The arena was set up the same, and there were no signs of the battle from the previous day. As soon as the sun hung directly overhead, the royal trio emerged once again in their masks, taking a seat at their table.

A trumpet blared and the doors opened once again to reveal the criminal, now looking rightfully anxious, led by the Hearts' captain. He was shackled the same as before and led up the steps of the gallows, and Law took personal pleasure in wrapping the noose around his neck.

The crowd was completely silent as the king spoke. "Heika, your unforgivable actions have led you to this. You will be hung for your crimes. As my disowned son, I will grant you final words."

The man lifted his head and looked around, easily finding Nami in the crowd. Chills ran down her spine as their eyes locked, a malicious grin forming on his face. "My death isn't the end of your problems. I'm far from the only one who is after your child."

Law scowled at him. "What do you mean?"

Heika barely shot a glance at him. "There was a broadcast in the underground networks. Have fun with that." He then refused to speak despite the pirate's coaxing.

The king had enough at that point. "It is time."

Hikari was the one to leave her seat. Law moved aside as she walked up the steps, staring down her twin. She stood next to a lever, lightly placing her hand on it before looking out to the crowd. "Let this be a lesson to you all: your class and rank is meaningless if you have a rotten soul," she declared before facing her brother again. Her eyes grew damp, but she kept her stoic expression. "Goodbye," she whispered, pulling the lever.

The floor opened under him and he dropped. The noose visibly tightened upon impact and he struggled against it, gasping for breath. Law watched, emotionless as Heika's face turned red and his eyes turned bloodshot. He looked around in desperation, but Hikari only turned away when he silently pleaded for her help.

Nami couldn't stand watching anymore, feeling as though she was the one being strangled to death. She took deep breaths and buried her face into Ikkaku's shoulder. His warning rang through her head and she tried to seal it away for now, being too caught up in the current emotional situation. It was rare for her to see someone die like this. Luffy was particularly fond of the idea of redemption, and somehow had the power to either turn people to his side or beat them enough to not be able to resist arrest. Perhaps it was because she was pregnant that she felt enough empathy to be upset? She couldn't be sure, but she was relieved when she heard the doctor pronounce him dead.

The citizens solemnly stood and left the stadium, leaving just the pirates with the guards and royals. One of the guards exchanged places with Law to take down the body. Upon seeing his distressed girlfriend, he ran over to make sure she was alright. Ikkaku got up to let him in, mumbling she was going to check on the princess.

"Are you doing okay?" Law asked quietly, touching her shoulder.

Her head popped up and she snapped out of her emotional daze. "Yeah, I'll be fine soon," she answered. "I felt like I was being strangled just by watching."

The man frowned. "Give me a second. I'll be right back," he promised, running back into the arena. She watched as he chatted with the king before running back to her. "Come with me," he offered his hand to help her stand.

She took it, and soon he was leading her outside the city in a direction they hadn't gone before. Trees started accumulating along their path, soon turning into a grand forest. She could barely see the oncoming hills through the thick foliage. "You know where we're going, right?" she huffed, getting tired after walking for half an hour.

"Of course. You're going to love it," he gave her a secretive smirk. "If you're tired, I can always carry you."

"No way," she shook her head stubbornly. "Especially not with your injuries. I just haven't been able to walk more than the length of your ship for months. This is good for me."

"Pregnant women _do _still need to exercise," he mused with a nod. "Otherwise, you might put on weight you won't be able to get rid of." He lightly poked her side, earning a harsh glare.

"Even if I did, I'll always be beautiful," she flicked her hair over her shoulder with attitude, turning her head away from him sharply.

He chuckled lowly. "You're right. Besides, what man _wouldn't _want your chest to get bigger?"

She puffed out her cheeks with annoyance. "It's already getting bigger and heavier. Get ready to give me a thousand back massages a day."

"Maybe I'll just hire a masseuse," he shrugged. "You'll need one for swollen ankles too."

"Ugh, don't remind me." She really wasn't looking forward to the extra physical changes in the future. The famous alluring Cat Thief Nami wasn't willing to be photographed looking twice her size and tired. The mood swings that had been setting in were bad enough, as well as the odd cravings, but she sincerely hoped she would at least develop in a way that would let her walk around without struggle.

He tugged her towards him, planting a light kiss on the top of her head. "Don't worry about it. You'll only get more beautiful," he assured quietly before trudging forward a bit, making her quicken her pace to fall in step with him again.

She said nothing, but grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. When he wasn't being annoying or secretive, he sure had his moments. She wasn't sure if it was accidental or not, but chose to not question it too much.

The hills finally came into view, making her eyes widen in surprise. From a distance, it looked like regular terrain, but up close showed they were much more than that. Just below the treetops revealed caves clearly lined with sparkling gems. They clearly went deep, and as they approached, she could tell these shining minerals were pyrite, also known as fool's gold. As a self-determined expert in the field of things worth money, she could tell right away. Still, it was astonishing to see so much from the distance, and the thoughts about the execution were wiped from her mind as she tried to mentally calculate their worth.

"This country is rich from their gem production. They don't even bother themselves with minerals this low of caliber," Law explained. "Although they _could _be mined for gold, there are much more interesting and valuable things to harvest from these hills."

"From the looks of all those stands in the city, it's like gold rains from the sky," she joked. The mental image got her heart pumping. If only…

"I got permission for us to look around, if you want," he offered.

"What? _The _Law asked for permission for something?" she gasped dramatically before giggling a bit. "Yeah. I wanna see."

"As an apology for you almost being hurt twice by their son, the king also said you could take whatever gem you like if we come across it."

With that information, she charged forward with excitement. "I want an alexandrite!"

Law rolled his eyes as he ran to catch up with her. "First of all, those are very rare-"

"Exactly why I want it," she interrupted.

"Second, we aren't going super deep. Any that _might _have been close to the entrance would've already been taken."

She pouted for a few seconds before sighing. He was right. "Fine, but I'm going in far enough to find something other than pyrite."

The captain knew once she was _this _determined about a valuable thing, there was no stopping her even if she did wander too far. Shaking his head in exasperation, he followed her into the cavern, pleased to find it at least had a path with some unknown source of glowing scattered along it.

After a while of wandering and her occasionally tapping against the dirt and stone walls, he heard her cry out and instantly appeared at her side. He looked around wildly, expecting the cave to be crumbling or even some massive bug, but he did not expect to see the intense shining of her eyes even with the light glow of the path. She turned to him and held up a dark mass surrounded with a white rock casing, but as she held it closer to the light, it started to reveal splotches shining different colours, though most were blue or green.

"This was on the floor! Someone must've mined it and accidentally left it!" she almost yelled out of excitement. "Do you know what this is?!"

"I'm more knowledgeable in coins and black-market goods than gemology," he admitted.

"This is a black opal. They're not as rare as alexandrite, but still up there," she gushed, holding it closer to the nearest glow source. "I've seen small amounts here and there on the jewelry of the mega-rich, but to find a piece this big in it's raw form is just amazing!"

Law determined just by looking at it that it would be worth quite a lot. Her fingers weren't even close to touching, barely holding onto it past the top curve. "Are you going to sell it?"

"Not right now," she replied before holding it out to him. "Can you shove it in your bottomless man-pocket?"

"Man-pocket?" he repeated, looking at her quizzingly.

"Your pants pocket," she clarified. "I know they look small but I'm sure they go way down."

He took it from her and slid it in. "It takes up half my pocket. It's not bottomless."

She only gave him an annoyed huff accompanied with an eye roll before walking past him, heading the direction they came from and mumbling angrily about the fashion industry.

By the time they got back to the palace, it was nearly time for a pre-announced early dinner, as the Hearts were planning on leaving soon after. The air was somber, reminding them of the execution that had only _just_ taken place, and the threat of further danger. They exchanged a look and silently agreed to save that conversation for later. They were ushered to the dining hall once again and were pleasantly surprised to see a large feast and all the Hearts waiting for them. Some were evidently trying _painfully _hard not to start eating without them.

They took their seats, and as if on queue, Hikari entered the room. "Oh, good, you're all here!" she greeted with a wide smile. It was as if she hadn't been a part of the (literally) suffocating death of her twin brother. She looked pointedly at Law, her smile turning into an almost secretive smirk. "We've got a little gift for all your help in this matter."

A small crowd of palace staff came around the corner, carrying various bags. Nami's eyes started to shine when they opened them to reveal gold and jewelry.

"It's so beautiful," the navigator gushed. Law was barely able to keep her from making a beeline to the treasures.

"These were apprehended from Heika's known hideouts," Hikari explained. "I had a team gathering them, and this is what we've got so far. I would like to give them to you as a gift, seeing as you helped us so much with him. Also, our people can be superstitious about using an evil man's money."

Nami stood and ran to the princess, visibly shaking with excitement. "As pirates, we don't care about tainted money. On behalf of the Heart pirates, I accept this generous gift."

"You can't speak on our behalf when we're _all _here," Ikkaku lectured with an amused smirk.

"As captain, _I _will accept. Mostly because I know Nami wouldn't forgive me if I declined," Law sent an exasperated look towards the pregnant woman, who only stared back with delight. He wasn't sure what she was so excited about; they would most likely end up trading the treasures for medical equipment and supplies. They weren't exactly lacking in the money department, being prominent suppliers in the black market, but every encounter with a Straw Hat seemed to drain their funds quite a bit.

The staff left the palace with the treasures, heading to the Polar Tang. Law just _knew _his money-loving fashionista would no doubt want to go on yet another shopping spree, as the last one ended up being mostly for clothes she would grow out of in another month or so. She'd been more taken with colours and style than future practicality.

After the dinner, he didn't give her the opportunity to shop quite yet. There was progress to be made in the search for his lost crewmate, and after one final meeting with the royals, they had two different slave trader ships to go after. Law planned on meeting with the Straw Hats again to extend an intel request. Getting information from a grand fleet of willing allies seemed much more reliable than the underground network that were most likely looking for him.

The king and queen said their goodbyes at the castle and wished them luck. Hikari decided to walk with them back to their ship. It was clearly hard for her and Ikkaku to part ways yet again, and Nami had to wonder if the princess would decide to go with them. That idea got shut down fast when the woman started to give huge hugs.

Shachi and Penguin nearly got nosebleeds when she gave them quick pecks on their cheeks. "Thanks for fighting for my country," she curtsied at them.

"N-no problem," Penguin blushed, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Shachi winked and gave her finger guns, making a clicking sound with his tongue. She giggled and moved on to thank the rest of the pirates individually, finally finishing with Nami, Law, and Ikkaku.

"Law, you better take care of this lovely lady," Hikari instructed as she pulled the pregnant woman into her grasp. "Nami, don't stress too much. If you need help with anything, you call me, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed.

Ikkaku whispered loudly to her behind her hand. "You're one of her side-bitches now."

"Vulgar!" the princess gasped dramatically before pulling the engineer into a tight hug. "Ikkini, I'm gonna miss you so much. Keep me updated on the search. Actually, just keep me updated on everything. We need to talk more."

"Will do," Ikkaku nodded firmly while returning the hug.

Hikari reluctantly pulled away before extending a hand out to the captain. "Thank you for your help in all this. At this rate, you may get some kind of medal from us."

"No thanks. It would indicate I'm some sort of hero," he declined while shaking her hand.

"Hm, always worried about your image," she teased. "You're not a bad guy, you know."

He chose to ignore her comment, boarding the ship before the women. A light glow on his cheeks indicated he was embarrassed by her comment, which the ladies laughed about once he was gone. "He just loves the bad boy rep," the brunette snickered. "I feel like apart from the black market, he's done more good than anything."

"He loves to lecture Luffy about not helping people, but he's not that different," Nami agreed. "I don't hate that about him, though. It's rather cute."

Ikkaku broke into a full out laugh. "You would describe the surgeon of death as _cute_? You really are something else, Nami."

The navigator jokingly put her hands on her hips and stuck up her nose. "I sure am, aren't I?"

The trio nearly jumped when they heard the engines start. "I suppose that's your queue," Hikari sighed sadly. "Stay safe out there, and if you find Rochelle, give her a huge hug for me."

"Will do!" Ikkaku waved as she and Nami ran to board.

The princess stood on the sand, waving until the ship was nearly out of focus. Once it was gone, she sunk to her knees, glad there were no civilians or guards around this area. The loss of her friends and permanent loss of the brother she once loved finally overwhelmed her, and she broke into a silent cry, fisting her hands in the sand. She didn't care if the grains got tangled in her hair, or if walking back with sand-filled shoes would be uncomfortable.

Once her tears stopped, she fell over and laid on the beach, filling with peace with every soothing wave that hit the shore. She then extended a prayer of protection for Nami. Her own problems were finally coming to an end, but she knew the navigator's were nowhere near finished.

**Xxxxxx**

**Hello everyone! **

**I had writers block all month and had to write this from scratch… I hope it seems pretty consistent since I was only writing a few sentences a day if I was lucky. There _is _an outline for this story but sometimes I just go rogue and we end up with things I didn't think of putting in before, and that will be the next few chapters. Yay me. To be honest, this is turning out a lot better than the initial timeline and I'm pretty sure you all would've just repeatedly smacked your heads against a wall for what it used to be.**

**I never gave names to King and Queen. By the time I noticed it, it was a bit late and I felt it was just a running personal joke at that point. I'm really sad that we're done with Hikari, but we did get some decent insight to what happened. I kind of imagine Rochelle kind of based on Pearl from Steven Universe with the dancing and swordsmanship. **

**Also yay, baby progression. It seems a bit fast but I am putting painful amounts of research into this (I had to explain to my boyfriend several times that no, we're not having a baby) and with a combo from actual pregnancy sites and various google searches, I'm trying to develop him as fast as it allows since I feel Nami and Law's kid would absolutely be talented like that. I was about to do a poll for deciding a name but I ended up giving him a temporary one that I can't part with now.**

**At this point in the story there are soooo many words. I've been writing this for over a year and pretty much have two versions, so if there are any inconsistencies, please let me know without full-on roasting me for it. I have an awful memory in general and it is only _slightly _better when it comes to writing. I barely even remember what happens in chapters 3-7.**

**Last of all, please stay safe out there. 2020 is out to get us but we're halfway done. **

**Sorry for babbling on, but I don't have many people to talk to these days and like talking about my thoughts while writing :)**


	13. Let's hear it for the Straw Hats!

**Hey everyone!**

**I have had an absolute shitshow June, which is absolutely saying something compared to the chaos that has been this year, so I haven't been able to work on the next chapter much and didn't see myself being able to do it last second. I decided I will be going on a somewhat summer hiatus with the possibility of random updates, so until September I won't be strictly adhering to updating on the 8****th****. Thank you for our support and understanding. **

**Instead of the usual story, here is a short chapter with the Straw Hats that I just wrote today. I haven't really written their characters apart from cameos pretty much, and I haven't actually watched the show in a while so I hope I remembered their personalities correctly when they appear.**

**Have a lovely summer! **

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Oi! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Zoro growled as he picked himself off the ground, shooting a glare at the man who'd just launched a fire-fueled kick at him.

Sanji crossed his arms, looking annoyed. "You are the _last _person with the right to control where we go." He stood in front of the helm protectively and stared down his rival, daring him to make another move. Jinbe was currently in the library with Robin to figure out a safe route to the next island. It was up to the cook to protect their lives from being lost because of the poor directional skills of the swordsman.

Said swordsman's jaw clenched at the insult and he placed a hand on the hilt of his sword threateningly. "I am perfectly fine steering a ship."

"And Luffy is a vegetarian," he retorted with a dramatic eye roll.

Zoro took that brief opportunity to rush forward, expecting to catch him off guard with an air slice. His eye widened once he saw a blackened arm block the wind blade. His mouth formed into a smirk as he prepared himself for another strike, expecting another decent battle with his rival.

Sanji scowled and flicked the growing ashes on his cigarette. Guarding the wheel from the directionally challenged should never be this hard. Still, he took his stance and prepared for another fight. They both moved to strike but were immediately held back by many, _many_, pairs of hands.

The men looked over simultaneously to see their beloved historian approaching with a nonchalant smile on her face. It was as if she _wasn't _restraining two of the monster trio of the ship without breaking a sweat. "No need to tear another hole through the ship," she said with her voice almost threatening. "We wouldn't want poor Franky to have to fix it with the sad amount of supplies we currently have."

Once the tense air dissipated, she let them go. Sanji immediately appeared at her side with hearts in his eyes. "Would you like a nice refreshing drink?" he asked.

"That would be lovely," she closed her eyes and smiled wider, sending him sprinting to the kitchen. She pulled out a map and placed it on a block in front of the helm. "Zoro, you weren't trying to steer, were you?"

He scratched the back of his head and looked away. "Maybe."

"I thought you might've accepted your weakness by now. Perhaps you just want to see us crash into a well-disguised reef and drown?"

There weren't many people alive who could intimidate the swordsman, but when Robin was like this, he knew better than to stand his ground. He mumbled out some excuse to run away before following through, leaving her alone on the raised deck.

It wasn't long until a fishman appeared next to her. "I've been navigating like this for years, but it doesn't feel nearly as impressive as when Nami does the job," he mused.

"She certainly adds a certain flair to her passion," she agreed.

"Do you miss her?"

"Don't you?"

"Of course. It doesn't seem quite right here without her," he admitted.

The woman leaned forward on the locked wheel. "Yeah. It's been a little lonely."

"Do you think she'll come back once the baby's born?"

She closed her eyes and thought back to the conversation they had just a few weeks ago. For protective reasons she'd suggested the navigator move to an island, but if she were being honest with herself, she didn't want that at all. These past few months without her were… Fine. The crew would always be getting into trouble no matter who joined or left, and it was entertaining. Still, the bond they grew to have was enough to leave Robin feeling a little empty without her around.

The answer to Jinbe's question was a complicated one. Even with all her knowledge, and her talent for reading people, she couldn't come up with a solid answer. "I don't know," she replied. She honestly hoped she would come back, though. They would find a way to make sure the baby was out of harm's way. They were Straw Hats, the makers of miracles.

A particularly powerful gust of wind knocked her out of her thoughts. Jinbe unlocked the wheel and took hold, adjusting the ship according to the course they'd figured out. They sailed in relatively peaceful silence, only interrupted with Sanji happily handing the woman a glass of blended lemonade and setting one down for the fishman as well before announcing he would start on dinner before Luffy felt like driving everyone crazy. He was currently napping in the crow's nest, but they knew his hunger was a ticking time bomb to wake him.

The deck was soon clear again, and another sudden gust of wind came from ahead. Something appeared in the distance, making Robin pull out a spyglass. "It's… Fog?" she reported. The sea was cloudless and it was a lovely warm day, and by her calculations there shouldn't have been fog at all for the next hundred kilometres, let alone within thirty. Then again, this _was _the new world.

She decided to take a look from the crow's nest to see if the height would help determine the cause. Of course, that meant waking up Luffy, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

Once she did arrive in the lookout spot, she found her captain completely passed out and surrounded by bones. She stifled a giggle upon noting he must've successfully snuck some food out from behind Sanji's back. Better the situation for her, though, since he was in a food coma and would not be yelling straight in her ear as she tried to focus.

She looked through her spyglass again, adjusting it as much as she could. There was something about that fog that seemed a bit peculiar, and a gasp escaped her lips once she caught on to what it was. Lowering the instrument, she decided she _would _wake her captain after all.

"Luffy!" she shook him awake, easily dodging his half-assed swatting. "Luffy, this is important!"

"Wha?" he opened his eyes and winced at the brightness of the sky. "What's going on? Is there meat?"

"Are you interested in seeing some fuzzy friendly faces?"

He sat up completely and adjusted his hat properly. "What? We have to hunt for meat?"

"It looks like we're crossing paths with Zou," she tried to disguise the excitement in her voice at the off chance that he would rather avoid them.

Her worry was proven wrong straight away as he suddenly jumped up, now completely awake. "Where?! Let's go! I haven't seen the minks in forever!"

"They're straight ahead. I'll tell Jinbe to keep going," she started to descend down the ladder. "Oh, and Sanji's making dinner."

"Yes!" Luffy launched himself out the side and stretched his arms to grab on to everything he could swing around on. Robin shared his enthusiasm, having a deep fondness for the minks, and decided to follow his lead. She let go of the ladder and summoned a bunch of hands to catch her at the bottom, easily startling Zoro who had bravely come back out and was distracted by his captain.

Usopp and Franky came out as well from their workshop, wondering what the sudden loud cheering was for. She saw Chopper already at Jinbe's side, checking on a cut on his arm that was close to healing from the last island adventure.

"Hey, what's all this noise about?!" Sanji ran out of the kitchen with a scowl. "Dinner isn't for another half hour so calm down!"

"We're approaching Zou," Robin announced, watching happily as everyone suddenly broke into excited smiles.

"Alright! Let's do this!" the cook was the first of the main crew to react. He danced around and chanted about the affectionate species.

The rest of the crew followed his lead. The bored, lazy atmosphere was completely gone as they prepared themselves to party hard. _'It's too bad Nami isn't here,'_ Robin thought. _'I know she would've loved to see them more than anyone.'_


End file.
